This week, the Kansas City Chiefs made one of the biggest moves of their offseason, extending their Pro Bowl guard Trey Smith, to a four-year, $94 million contract. Smith becomes the fourth player selected in the 2021 NFL Draft to receive a long-term deal, with Nick Bolton, Creed Humphrey, and Noah Gray all getting deals done earlier this year.
Brett Veach made it a priority to lock down Smith long-term after the dominating start to his career in an attempt to protect superstar QB Patrick Mahomes.
Despite being graded as my top interior offensive lineman in the 2021 class, Trey Smith fell to the sixth round due to some health concerns. Eventually, the Chiefs had seen enough and decided to stop the fall at pick 226, and it has proven to be one of the best additions Brett Veach has made in his tenure as GM. Smith became an instant starter, immediately being one of the best run-blocking linemen in the NFL, and he never looked back.
Even though the Chiefs did not have a first-round pick in 2021, Brett Veach found a way to hit on four picks with guys who have proven to be quality starters at their respective positions. Creed Humphrey is likely the best center in the NFL, Nick Bolton has been one of the best pure tacklers in football, and Noah Gray has flashed an impressive skillset behind Travis Kelce early in his career.
The other two picks consisted of Joshua Kaindoh and Cornell Powell, both of whom saw little playing time and are no longer with the team. Being able to extend more than 50% of players selected in a draft is an extreme rarity in the NFL. The Chiefs had only extended one player (Mike Danna) drafted in the three years before the 2021 class, a display of how impressive these four guys have been thus far in their careers.
This is both a display of how great Brett Veach is at managing the draft, as well as how great the Chiefs' coaches are at developing talent. While they were not extended, the Chiefs saw a lot of talent added to the team in the years before 2021, with guys like L'Jarius Sneed, Kahlen Saunders, Juan Thornhill, and others who made big impacts on the team.
The Chiefs' dynasty has been built on successful drafts and good management of resources, extending or trading away players before their contracts expire. Now entering 2025, the Chiefs will have a lot of decisions to make, with Trent McDuffie, George Karlaftis, and several other players looking for extensions next offseason. But I think it is safe to say that Chiefs fans can trust Brett Veach to do what is best for the team going forward.