The Kansas City Chiefs made multiple key additions this offseason. Among them was signing left tackle Jaylon Moore to a two-year contract worth $30 million. This move was met with cautious optimism after the Chiefs' struggles at left tackle in 2024.
While Moore was never a starter with his prior team, the San Francisco 49ers, he was solid when he was called upon, which is why Kansas City signed him. That said, the Chiefs' actions since signing Moore have not pointed in a positive direction for the 27-year-old lineman.
Jaylon Moore Has Seemingly Already Let Kansas City Down
Through no fault of his own, Moore may already be fighting an uphill battle for playing time this season. During the draft, Kansas City selected Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons. Although Simmons is still recovering from a torn patellar tendon, it seems he is progressing faster than the Chiefs' training staff originally thought he would. As a result, Simmons may be able to challenge for the starting job during training camp.
If that comes to fruition, Simmons' return would be a lot sooner than many expected. When the Chiefs drafted Simmons, many fans and analysts expected him to take his rookie season as a "redshirt" recovery year. This would allow Moore to start at left tackle and the Chiefs to benefit from the signing.
With Simmons' status up in the air, Moore's contract is looking like a bigger mistake day by day. This is because instead of spending $30 million in an attempt to keep both Joe Thuney and Trey Smith, they spent it on Moore. Sure, left tackle was a more pressing need and Kansas City had no idea that Simmons would fall to them, but keeping an All-Pro in Thuney would have been a better use of $300 million than using it on a player who could turn out to be a backup.
Nevertheless, pads have yet to come on, so Moore still has every chance to prove signing him wasn't a mistake. It will certainly be interesting to watch an important position battle, if Simmons is in fact healthy, during training camp.