2016 Kansas City Chiefs Offseason News

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Free Agency

The Chiefs made some noise prior to free agency by locking up several key members of last year's defense. All-Pro linebacker Juston Houston was inked to a seven-year deal while future Hall of Famer Derrick Johnson was signed to a new thee-year deal. Kansas City then re-upped defensive end Mike Devito keeping most of the front seven in tact for another season.

However, a key decision was made not to re-sign linebacker Tamba Hali. Hali had a disappointing season last year with only two sacks and, with all the money tied up in Houston and Johnson and offensive stars Alex Smith and Jeremy Maclin, the team decided they had to move on. Third-year linebacker Dee Ford will slide into Hali's spot on the weak side with Hali now playing for the Vikings.

Also on defense, the Chiefs chose not to bring back any of their safeties from last season. Tyvon Branch and Ron Parker wound up backing up Charles Woodson last season and were no re-signed along with starting FS Husain Abdullah. While all three players contributed to one of the AFC's best defenses last year, the Chiefs decided that they needed to try and get better in the offseason either through free agency or the draft,

Signings

The first splash Kansas City made in free agency was signing left tackle Andrew Whitworth, possibly the best offensive lineman available. Whitworth will replace Donald Stephenson who was solid but unspectacular protecting Smith's blind side last year. The Chiefs then moved to fill their holes at safety by signing Louis Delmas from Miami and Dawan Landry who did not play all of last year. Landry is a hard hitting safety who can fill vs the run and is decent in coverage when called on to do so. Delmas is a great coverage free safety who can make plays on the ball and can potentially give the Chiefs the playmaker in the secondary that they lacked last season.

Kansas City did not stop there, however. The Chiefs continued to work on their offensive line and brought in center Stefen Wisniewski and guard Evan Mathis. Those signings significantly improve the Chiefs offensive line as they shift back to a more traditional, run first offense. Kansas City also added backup tackle Anthony Collins and tight end Zach Miller to provide depth and flexibility on offense.

Free Agent Signings

LT Andrew Whitowrth
RG Evan Mathis
FS Louis Delmas
SS Dawan Landry
C Stefen Wisniewski
LT Anthony Collins
TE Zach Miller
MLB Vincent Rey
DT Terrence Cody
DT Jerrell Powe
OG Dakota Dozier
OT Sam Baker
OLB Kevin Reddick
OLB Jackson Jeffcoat

 

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Draft

Much like in free agency, the Chiefs two main priorities were offensive line and safety. During the draft, the Chiefs took three offensive linemen and three safeties out of their nine picks.

Center Matt Brock was the first player off the board for the Chiefs when they made their first pick in the second round. Kansas City traded out of the first round and acquired two 2nd round picks, one of which turned into Brock. Brock was a center in college but is expected to be utilized at guard. He is extremely athletic, has very good strength and is a solid drive blocker. Brock has the potential to be a starter Day 1 if the Chiefs had not done so well in free agency. He will likely sit the first season and learn from the veterans before taking over one of the guard positions next season.

The Chiefs stuck to their best player available draft strategy by taking wide receiver Trett Franklin with their second, 2nd round pick. Franklin is a smaller receiver (5-10 177) but is explosive in the open field and plays bigger than his size would indicate. The former Georgia standout will likely compete with former Bulldog teammate Chris Conley and former Duck running back De'Anthony Thomas for time as the #2 and slot receiver positions.

Kansas City went offensive line again with their final pick of the 2nd round grabbing offensive tackle Shawn Marks. Marks is another guy that could have potentially started for the Chiefs had they not done so well in free agency. He will back up Whitworth this season and will look to potentially take over the right tackle position if Eric Fisher is not retained. Marks is another lineman who is very athletic for his position and, while not the strongest tackle in the draft, has very good blocking skills, especially in pass protection.

Center Hayden Lowe was also taken by the Chiefs two round later and adds yet another solid, young lineman for the team to build around. Lowe was one of the strongest players in the draft and has above average blocking skills which will likely see him anchoring the line in the near future.

2016 Chiefs Draft Picks

C Matt Brock, Virginia - 2nd Round (87 OVR)
WR Trett Franklin, Georgia - 2nd Round (76 OVR)
OT Shawn Marks, San Jose St - 2nd Round (80 OVR)
FS Ace Brandon, Lambuth - 3rd Round (67 OVR)
C Hayden Lowe, Northern Illinois - 4th Round (79 OVR)
SS Cody Looney, South Carolina - 5th Round (65 OVR)
DE Cory Spriggs, Pittsburgh - 6th Round (65 OVR)
FS Justin Pittman, UTEP - 6th Round (66 OVR)
DE Jerod Solomon, Maryland - 7th Round (69 OVR)