KC Chiefs: Loss of Stefen Wisniewski makes guard position higher priority

The KC Chiefs haven’t made a splash in free agency, but as of this writing, they’ve lost three players to other teams. StefenWisniewski is the latest to sign elsewhere and now the guard position is an even bigger need this offseason.

The Kansas City Chiefs offensive line played well near the end of the season and throughout the playoffs (though they struggled to contain the 49ers front four in Super Bowl LIV), but most would agree that the line was at its best once Stefen Wisniewski was slotted in at left guard.

Wisniewski was signed in mid October, but didn’t see the field much until Andrew Wylie was injured. Wylie didn’t see the field even after recovering and the reason for that was that Wisniewski and the rest of the line were gelling well and it didn’t make sense to switch things up at that point, especially with Wylie struggling prior to his injury.

While Wylie is still on the roster for 2020 after the Chiefs opted to retain him, the job won’t be handed to him and it shouldn’t be. The Chiefs need to address the guard position in both free agency and the draft now that their left guard from the playoff run is off to Pittsburgh.

Some of the bigger names still available in free agency include Richie Incognito, Ronald Leary, Eric Kush, and Michael Person, but all four of those names are over the age of 30. The better route would be to find a guard in the draft, but with only five picks and plenty of other needs, finding a fit that can immediately be plugged into the Chiefs o-line and play well won’t be a walk in the park.

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According to The Draft Network, the five best interior offensive linemen available in the 2020 NFL Draft are Cesar Ruiz (Michigan), Lloyd Cushenberry III (LSU), Jonah Jackson (Ohio State), Matt Hennessy (Temple), and Robert Hunt (Louisiana). Some of those players spent time at center during their college careers and that’s a need the Chiefs should be looking to address this offseason as well.

The offensive line is pivotal moving forward, especially when having a franchise quarterback to protect. We started to see the unit gel well this past season, but losing Wisniewski is a setback for sure. The tackles are still solid with Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz as the bookends there, but Brett Veach needs to make moves along the interior offensive line.

Andrew Wylie deserves a chance to win his job back, as he had some good seasons under his belt (he was the team’s rookie of the year in 2017), but he shouldn’t be handed the job by any means. Find some competition at left guard because the o-line needs to be shored up.

Do any names peak your interest at guard this offseason?