KC Chiefs fans should buy into hype surrounding Clyde Edwards-Helaire
Taking a running back in the first round is risky, but the KC Chiefs did so because they believe in Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
The LSU running back is showing why he was a first round pick, looking pretty dang good in training camp so far. Yes, it’s just training camp, but it’s not uncommon for rookies to come into a complex offense and struggle to adapt right off the bat.
That hasn’t been an issue for Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who the Kansas City Chiefs took with the final pick of the first round this year.
It wouldn’t have been shocking if Edwards-Helaire had struggled though, as he wasn’t likely going to be the RB1 heading into the season. A lot changed when Damien Williams made the difficult decision to opt out of the 2019 season, but the biggest was that it propelled CEH into the starting role, something he’s shown he’s ready for.
#Chiefs running backs coach Deland McCullough told me RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire is further along mentally than you would expect from a typical rookie. McCullough thinks he will be ready for Week 1, now exactly three weeks away.
— Pete Sweeney (@pgsween) August 20, 2020
According to Jeffri Chadiha of NFL.com,
"“They’re very excited about what that they’ve seen from him so far. Coming in they knew he was a smart kid, he’s shown that. He’s picking up the playbook pretty fast, they know he’s a guy that can make plays out of the backfield and as a receiver. What Patrick Mahomes said about him the other day is he loves this kid’s vision. The kid has a feel for finding the right running lanes, finding the right spaces in the passing game, being available when Mahomes needs a checkdown. Right now everything’s going well for this running back. He’s going to have a big year if things keep going in this direction.”"
Fans were already excited for Clyde Edwards-Helaire to join this offense because of his track record at LSU, but the fact that he’s adapted so quickly with this group is really impressive.
The run game was the weakest area on the offense last season and that’s why the Chiefs went with Edwards-Helaire in the first round of the draft. They need that dominant, explosive running back that they didn’t have last year (yes, Williams came up clutch in the Super Bowl, but he was mostly inconsistent throughout the regular season).
If the Chiefs found a game changing running back, there’s no stopping their offense and that could very well be Clyde Edwards-Helaire. There’s hype surrounding this kid for multiple reasons, but sometimes it can feel risky truly buying into that hype.
Well, the LSU product is showing what he can do in training camp and soon, he’ll get to make his Kansas City Chiefs debut against the Texans in the NFL’s season opener. That’ll also be when he shows that he was absolutely worth taking in the first round.