The Good and the Bad From the Chiefs’ Official 53-Man Roster Reveal

The Chiefs officially released their initial 53-man roster yesterday, setting the stage for next week’s Week 1 matchup against Detroit.

It’s never easy to trim your roster, so we saw things to both celebrate and groan about in addition to a few surprises and at least one storyline to be very concerned with.

Chiefs Official 53-Man Roster

While I see a few areas of concern, like the defensive line early in the season, this is once again perhaps the league’s strongest roster and worthy of being the Super Bowl favorites.

After a year of adjusting to life without Tyreek Hill, the Chiefs field a deep wide receiving room, keeping seven players for the first time in the Andy Reid era. That doesn’t mean all is rosy though. Let’s look at the bad and the good from the roster.

The Bad

• Chris Jones – Yeah, this is a problem. Chris Jones was placed on the “Reserve/Did Not Report” list, all but confirming he won’t play in the Week 1 game vs. the Lions. Contract talks are reportedly at a standstill, with Jones’ holdout now extending into the regular season. Given Charles Omenihu’s early-season suspension, the Chiefs’ defensive line is a concern.
• Fly free, Shane Buechele – The preseason fan-favorite was among the roster cuts. While I’d imagine Kansas City hopes to bring him back on the practice squad, Buechele had a shot at the backup QB job but a poor final preseason game sealed his fate.
• Running Back Pump Fake – First, we thought Deneric Prince was making the team. Then, La’Mical Perine looked like a fit after a strong end to the preseason. In the end, the Chiefs only kept three running backs and we were on a wild goose hunt the whole time. Clyde Edwards-Helaire is still likely to figure in the game plan, much to some fans’ chagrin, though that did mean Kansas City could keep an additional player at wide receiver.

The Good

• Justyn Ross! – Perhaps the best news of the day was that Ross made the team, fulfilling a dream and incredible comeback from injury. It remains to be seen how the Chiefs will utilize Ross, but it’s easy to imagine him snagging red zone passes out of the air similar to Jody Fortson in recent years. He brings a unique skillset to the offense and I’m thrilled to see his progression.
• Catching up with modern times, sort of – It’s the end of an era. Kansas City didn’t keep a fullback, though Blake Bell will likely serve a hybrid role. I fear Andy Reid will still use Bell in short-yardage situations, a play we’ve seen fail far too often, but this is at least a step in the right direction.
• Linebacker Versatility – The linebacker room has taken huge strides in recent years with Nick Bolton and Willie Gay Jr.’s development and I’m excited to see how Drue Tranquill performs. Kansas City kept six linebackers, giving both Steve Spagnuolo and Dave Toub a lot of options on defense and special teams. It looks like this position will only keep growing stronger moving forward.

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