MY TAKE ON THE CHIEFS' DRAFT
I feel the best description of the strategy used in selecting eight draft picks by the Kansas City Chiefs is the proverbial "good news, bad news." Let's begin with the good news.
Round 1 Eric Berry--Safety--5' 11 1/4" 211--Tennessee
The best safety prospect I personally have seen in many years. Except for his size, he has no downside. If he can stay healthy, he should be a 10-year starter. If the day ever comes when Scott Pioli decides to upgrade his hideous defensive front-7 from 'warm bodies' to real NFL quality players, Berry could become an All-Pro player without a doubt.
Round 2 Dexter McCluster--Wide Receiver/Running Back/Kick Returner--5' 8 3/4" 172--Ole Miss
Dynamic playmaker, a smaller, slightly slower version of Minnesota's Percy Harvin. Could become a slot receiver & return man in the Wes Welker mold. Could become a major weapon provided the pass protection improves.
Round 2 (obtained from Atlanta in trade for Tony Gonzalez) Javier Arenas--Cornerback/Kick & Punt Returner--5' 8 1/2" 197--Alabama
Very tough in every aspect of the game. Fearless tackler in the run game, excellent open field tackler. Will probably never be more than a nickel back because of his size & speed. Excellent closing quickness in the short area. Awesome return man, 7 career scores. Probably picked a round too high & I would have to call the choice of Arenas a luxury when the front-7 needed help stopping the run & pressuring the QB.
Round 3 Jon Asamoah--Guard--6' 4" 305--Illinois
Started 37 consecutive games for the Illini. Very tough, strong & intense. Good footwork, good punch, should be able to play all 3 interior line positions eventually. Should be a longtime starter, an excellent choice.
Round 3 Tony Moeaki--Tight End--6' 3" 245--Iowa
Decent athletic prospect with good hands. Horrific injury history, missed 15 games plus had a medical redshirt season. Fractured foot & wrist, dislocated elbow, sprained shoulder, sprained ankle, 2 concussions & 3 operations. I had Moeaki ranked as a mid-late 4th round pick. The Chiefs gave up their 4th round pick & one of their 5th rounders to trade back into the third round for this pick. Aaron Hernandez, Dennis Pitta & Clay Harbour were still on the board, who missed one game between them in their college careers. Moeaki had 72 career receptions, the other three had 102, 221 & 146 respectively. All three out ran, out benched & out jumped Moeaki. Pitta & Harbour were both team captains. I read a quote from Moeaki in The Kansas City Star, "All the injuries are behind me." Kansas City already has an often-injured tight end in Brad Cottam, he couldn't stay healthy at Tennessee & he hasn't stayed healthy for the Chiefs. Why risk going down this road again? Especially expending 2 draft picks to do it.
Round 4 No pick, traded it in the Moeaki deal.
Round 5 Kendrick Lewis--Safety--5' 11 1/2" 195--Ole Miss
Good effort, good anticipation, solid in run support. Not a hitter, more of a drag-down tackler. Forty time at the combine(4.69) caused a lot of concern as did his position drills, which failed to impress anyone. Back peddle was too high, hip flip was awkward & his acceleration just wasn't there. He looks like a career special teamer, but as a fifth round draft pick, that's not a bad thing. I think the game matters to him & he should be a good soldier for Todd Haley. With NT Cam Thomas still on the board, I feel like Pioli could have done better.
Round 5 Cameron Sheffield--Outside Linebacker--6' 2 1/4" 257--Troy
College DE who will stand up outside for the Chiefs. Doesn't have that explosive first step you want in a rush linebacker. Speed is just adequate, good upper body power, but he seems a step slow too often. Fairly productive, 15.5 sacks, 163 tackles, 28.5 for loss in 37 starts. Because of quickness & speed issues, looks like a career backup & special teamer. The same comment regarding Cam Thomas applies here, he was taken by San Diego 4 picks after this selection was made.
Round 5 This is the other pick traded in the Moeaki deal.
Round 6 No pick, traded last year to the Dolphins for Andy Alleman. No longer with Kansas City.
Round 7 Traded this pick last year during the draft to get overall pick #256, used to draft Ryan Succop.
Now for the bad news. The Chiefs did absolutely nothing to improve their 31st ranked run defense. They did absolutely nothing to improve their pathetic pass rush, ranked 31st in sacks. This defense lacks the anchor a good 3-4 scheme requires, a hulk nose tackle. By my count there were 5 quality nose tackles in this draft. One was selected in the 1st round, three in the 2nd round & one in the 5th. Nine of the starting nose tackles in the NFL were selected with 1st or 2nd round picks. It appears if you want that run-stuffing, space-eater, you're going to have to draft him early. Without this type of nose tackle, it's very difficult to run this scheme effectively. They have a 4-3 D-tackle playing right defensive end, facing the opponents best offensive lineman week in week out. Dorsey squares off against a left tackle, a player 20-40 pounds heavier, 4-6 inches taller with a 2-4" reach advantage. These are not matchups he is going to win very often. The two starting defensive ends have 1 career sack between them. This defense starts 2 inside linebackers who constantly overrun the play, lose their gap responsibility & have difficulty shedding blocks. They don't hit with any explosion & neither is an effective blitzer. The left outside linebacker recorded only 2 sacks last season & that simply doesn't cut it. There is very little depth in this front-7. Drafting a 5th round slow-ish outside linebacker isn't a plan for upgrading this teams' defensive performance.
It seems to me, one of the 2nd round picks should have used on been someone who is capable of playing nose tackle. The 4th round pick that was traded could have gone for a different tight end or an inside linebacker. By not making the trade, Kansas City would have had another 5th round pick, possibly for a strong safety or maybe to trade down for a 6th & a 7th, picks they didn't have. I know I'll hear the obligatory "you're a Monday Morning Quarterback." Yes, hindsight is 20-20, but the people making these decisions are paid millions to make these selections. When the worst performing parts of a team aren't addressed in free agency or the draft, it leaves them wide open to criticism & second-guessing.
Round 1 Eric Berry--Safety--5' 11 1/4" 211--Tennessee
The best safety prospect I personally have seen in many years. Except for his size, he has no downside. If he can stay healthy, he should be a 10-year starter. If the day ever comes when Scott Pioli decides to upgrade his hideous defensive front-7 from 'warm bodies' to real NFL quality players, Berry could become an All-Pro player without a doubt.
Round 2 Dexter McCluster--Wide Receiver/Running Back/Kick Returner--5' 8 3/4" 172--Ole Miss
Dynamic playmaker, a smaller, slightly slower version of Minnesota's Percy Harvin. Could become a slot receiver & return man in the Wes Welker mold. Could become a major weapon provided the pass protection improves.
Round 2 (obtained from Atlanta in trade for Tony Gonzalez) Javier Arenas--Cornerback/Kick & Punt Returner--5' 8 1/2" 197--Alabama
Very tough in every aspect of the game. Fearless tackler in the run game, excellent open field tackler. Will probably never be more than a nickel back because of his size & speed. Excellent closing quickness in the short area. Awesome return man, 7 career scores. Probably picked a round too high & I would have to call the choice of Arenas a luxury when the front-7 needed help stopping the run & pressuring the QB.
Round 3 Jon Asamoah--Guard--6' 4" 305--Illinois
Started 37 consecutive games for the Illini. Very tough, strong & intense. Good footwork, good punch, should be able to play all 3 interior line positions eventually. Should be a longtime starter, an excellent choice.
Round 3 Tony Moeaki--Tight End--6' 3" 245--Iowa
Decent athletic prospect with good hands. Horrific injury history, missed 15 games plus had a medical redshirt season. Fractured foot & wrist, dislocated elbow, sprained shoulder, sprained ankle, 2 concussions & 3 operations. I had Moeaki ranked as a mid-late 4th round pick. The Chiefs gave up their 4th round pick & one of their 5th rounders to trade back into the third round for this pick. Aaron Hernandez, Dennis Pitta & Clay Harbour were still on the board, who missed one game between them in their college careers. Moeaki had 72 career receptions, the other three had 102, 221 & 146 respectively. All three out ran, out benched & out jumped Moeaki. Pitta & Harbour were both team captains. I read a quote from Moeaki in The Kansas City Star, "All the injuries are behind me." Kansas City already has an often-injured tight end in Brad Cottam, he couldn't stay healthy at Tennessee & he hasn't stayed healthy for the Chiefs. Why risk going down this road again? Especially expending 2 draft picks to do it.
Round 4 No pick, traded it in the Moeaki deal.
Round 5 Kendrick Lewis--Safety--5' 11 1/2" 195--Ole Miss
Good effort, good anticipation, solid in run support. Not a hitter, more of a drag-down tackler. Forty time at the combine(4.69) caused a lot of concern as did his position drills, which failed to impress anyone. Back peddle was too high, hip flip was awkward & his acceleration just wasn't there. He looks like a career special teamer, but as a fifth round draft pick, that's not a bad thing. I think the game matters to him & he should be a good soldier for Todd Haley. With NT Cam Thomas still on the board, I feel like Pioli could have done better.
Round 5 Cameron Sheffield--Outside Linebacker--6' 2 1/4" 257--Troy
College DE who will stand up outside for the Chiefs. Doesn't have that explosive first step you want in a rush linebacker. Speed is just adequate, good upper body power, but he seems a step slow too often. Fairly productive, 15.5 sacks, 163 tackles, 28.5 for loss in 37 starts. Because of quickness & speed issues, looks like a career backup & special teamer. The same comment regarding Cam Thomas applies here, he was taken by San Diego 4 picks after this selection was made.
Round 5 This is the other pick traded in the Moeaki deal.
Round 6 No pick, traded last year to the Dolphins for Andy Alleman. No longer with Kansas City.
Round 7 Traded this pick last year during the draft to get overall pick #256, used to draft Ryan Succop.
Now for the bad news. The Chiefs did absolutely nothing to improve their 31st ranked run defense. They did absolutely nothing to improve their pathetic pass rush, ranked 31st in sacks. This defense lacks the anchor a good 3-4 scheme requires, a hulk nose tackle. By my count there were 5 quality nose tackles in this draft. One was selected in the 1st round, three in the 2nd round & one in the 5th. Nine of the starting nose tackles in the NFL were selected with 1st or 2nd round picks. It appears if you want that run-stuffing, space-eater, you're going to have to draft him early. Without this type of nose tackle, it's very difficult to run this scheme effectively. They have a 4-3 D-tackle playing right defensive end, facing the opponents best offensive lineman week in week out. Dorsey squares off against a left tackle, a player 20-40 pounds heavier, 4-6 inches taller with a 2-4" reach advantage. These are not matchups he is going to win very often. The two starting defensive ends have 1 career sack between them. This defense starts 2 inside linebackers who constantly overrun the play, lose their gap responsibility & have difficulty shedding blocks. They don't hit with any explosion & neither is an effective blitzer. The left outside linebacker recorded only 2 sacks last season & that simply doesn't cut it. There is very little depth in this front-7. Drafting a 5th round slow-ish outside linebacker isn't a plan for upgrading this teams' defensive performance.
It seems to me, one of the 2nd round picks should have used on been someone who is capable of playing nose tackle. The 4th round pick that was traded could have gone for a different tight end or an inside linebacker. By not making the trade, Kansas City would have had another 5th round pick, possibly for a strong safety or maybe to trade down for a 6th & a 7th, picks they didn't have. I know I'll hear the obligatory "you're a Monday Morning Quarterback." Yes, hindsight is 20-20, but the people making these decisions are paid millions to make these selections. When the worst performing parts of a team aren't addressed in free agency or the draft, it leaves them wide open to criticism & second-guessing.
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