How have the Kansas City Chiefs’ 2020 rookies performed through the first four games of the season?
The Kansas City Chiefs drafted six players in the 2020 NFL Draft with the hopes that those six players could come in and contribute for the defending Super Bowl champions. The picks included Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Willie Gay, Lucas Niang, L’Jarius Sneed, Mike Danna, and BoPete Keyes. Edwards-Helaire, Sneed, and Danna have been the most prevalent so far for the Chiefs, but we’re only through one quarter of the season.
Edwards-Helaire was a surprising pick with the final selection of the first round, but the Chiefs needed a running back and addressed the position as soon as they could. The run game was one of their biggest weaknesses during their Super Bowl winning season, so while people might have disagreed with the pick, not many were actually mad about it.
Gay was the linebacker the Chiefs desperately needed, or at least they hoped he’d be. Linebacker was by far the weakest position on the team in 2019 and the Chiefs have been struggling to find a sideline to sideline linebacker since Derrick Johnson was released after the 2017 season.
Niang was a steal in the third round or at least that seemed to be the consensus at the time. He didn’t allow a single sack during his time at TCU and somehow he was still there for the taking in the third round.
Sneed played both safety and cornerback in college, so fans were curious to see how the Chiefs would utilize him. Danna was a surprising pick because not many people had even really heard of him. He seemed like a player that would still be available once the draft concluded. Keyes was someone the Chiefs traded into the seventh round for and they hoped the Tulane corner would be a pivotal part of their secondary moving forward.
Niang opted out of the season, but the other five players as well as any other rookies we’ve seen in action so far will be eligible to be graded for their first quarter performances. How did everyone grade out? Let’s take a look.