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KC Chiefs: What Laurent Duvernay-Tardif’s decision means for right guard

By Leigh Oleszczak

Guard for the Kansas City Chiefs Laurent Duvernay-Tardif in action during Super Bowl LIV between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on February 2, 2020. (Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
Guard for the Kansas City Chiefs Laurent Duvernay-Tardif in action during Super Bowl LIV between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on February 2, 2020. (Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Laurent Duvernay-Tardif made the decision to not suit up for the KC Chiefs in the 2020 season and officially announced that he will be opting out this year.

The news isn’t a shocking one given Laurent Duvernay-Tardif‘s medical background and the fact that he has been working the frontlines throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. He mentioned in his announcement that he would hate to be spreading the virus throughout the community.

With LDT not playing this year, that opens things up at the right guard position for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Both guard positions need filled now and fortunately the Chiefs have a plethora of talent to choose from to fill both spots.

This will force the KC Chiefs to roll with someone new at right guard.

In discussions about who could potentially play the left guard position, the most commonly mentioned names were Martinas Rankin, Mike Remmers, Andrew Wylie, and third round rookie Lucas Niang.

The Chiefs acquired Rankin from the Texans in a trade last year, signed Remmers as a free agent, Wylie was undrafted in 2017, and Niang was their third round pick this year.

The team also has some long shots to earn the job with names like Yasir Durant, Jovahn Fair, and Ryan Hunter, all of whom could throw their hats into the ring now.

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While losing Duvernay-Tardif is big, it’s not the end of the world for this Chiefs team. They played without him for most of the 2018 season and made it all the way to the AFC title game. He missed two games in the 2019 regular season as well.

Wylie filled in for LDT frequently in 2018, but struggled to be effective at left guard this year. He ended up getting injured and never won his job back, so even though the odds are in Wylie’s favor to win one of the two guard spots, it’s not guaranteed he’ll keep it once it’s his.

Remmers has spent the last seven years with four different teams and has played just about everywhere on the line. He’ll be someone who could either win one of these two guard jobs or be a nice swing option along the o-line.

Rankin spent six games at left guard last year before getting injured. If he’s good to go in 2020, he definitely has a chance to win a starting gig.

Hopefully Niang gets a strong look at either spot. He had a great track record at TCU and the Chiefs didn’t draft him to sit on the bench. Sure his preferred position is at right tackle, but Mitchell Schwartz is locked up at that position for the foreseeable future.

Again, the loss of Laurent Duvernay-Tardif along the Kansas City Chiefs offensive line is big, but it’s not going to make or break the team’s season. There was even talk prior to him restructuring his contract that the Chiefs could potentially part ways with him, so fans had already been imagining a future without LDT and what that might look like.

Who would you like to see replace LDT at right guard in 2020?

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