On Thursday, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell took a senior class yearbook approach to one of the NFL’s conferences, summarizing the offseason of every AFC team with a superlative. Most of them were pretty negative — and his thoughts about the Kansas City Chiefs were no exception.
Kansas City ChiefsThe superlative: Most likely to slide their pass protection to the left
For the second time in the Patrick Mahomes era, the Chiefs lost a Super Bowl in which their offensive line was overwhelmed by the opposing pass rush. General manager Brett Veach responded to that first defeat by rebuilding the line with future standouts. He traded draft picks to acquire left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., signed top Patriots guard Joe Thuney and drafted future stars in center Creed Humphrey and guard Trey Smith in 2021. Those four became the core of a great line that helped Kansas City make it to the past three Super Bowls.
It’s no surprise Veach reinvested in the offensive line this offseason, but the Chiefs’ moves are a little more controversial this time around. After franchise-tagging Smith, he traded Thuney to the Bears, getting a fourth-round pick for a player who was a first-team All-Pro in 2024, albeit a 32-year-old who is a year away from free agency. Thuney was overmatched in the Super Bowl at left tackle, but he’s still an excellent, reliable guard.
The additions are hardly sure things, especially for 2025. At left tackle, the Chiefs signed lineman Jaylon Moore — who mostly served as Trent Williams’ backup and has only 12 career starts — to a deal guaranteeing $21.2 million. There’s nothing wrong with sitting behind a future Hall of Famer, but that’s a lot of money for an inexperienced, unproven tackle, especially one who is expected to be protecting Mahomes’ blindside in Week 1. Andy Reid has earned some benefit of the doubt with offensive line evaluation, but defenses were able to overload Moore’s plate at times last season. I would expect them to test Moore’s ability to deal with duals and unexpected rushers early in 2025.
Read Barnwell’s complete view on the Chiefs here.
My take
Essentially, Barnwell is choosing to view all of Kansas City’s offensive line adjustments in the worst possible light — and that’s OK. We must be prepared for the possibility that Veach has blown his most important offseason project. But is it fair to characterize these moves as “a little more controversial” than those made in 2021?
Of the four moves Veach made on the offensive line that year, only Thuney’s signing was a sure thing — and even then, the Chiefs’ GM was criticized for overpaying the longtime New England Patriots guard.
While Brown had spent most of the previous season playing left tackle in place of the injured Ronnie Stanley, it was in the Baltimore Ravens’ run-based offense; no one was entirely sure he’d do well in the Kansas City offense.
To be sure, Humphrey was a well-regarded second-round pick — but he was still going to be starting as a rookie. And although Smith has proven to be a top-flight guard, the medical issues that made him fall to the draft’s sixth round justified plenty of skepticism about his acquisition.
So while Barnwell’s suspicion about Veach’s 2025 moves isn’t inappropriate, it’s not that far removed from what fans felt four years ago; it’s only with the benefit of hindsight that the 2021 rebuild looks so good.
It’s true: Moore has only a small number of NFL starts — fewer than Brown when he came to Kansas City. But Brown had roughly the same number as Moore at the position he would play. And the Chiefs should be more comfortable with the former San Francisco 49ers’ tackle adjusting to the system than fans ever were with Brown.
And, it’s true: Simmons might not be ready to play until 2026. If that’s how it plays out (and as long as Moore is an effective stopgap), the $21.2 million the Chiefs have promised him will be a bargain. It will be a lot if he ends up being a swing tackle, but considering that the team has lost two league championship games largely because of issues on the offensive line, is that something fans should worry about?
That brings us to Suamataia. It’s reasonable to be concerned about his ability to play as an NFL guard; he didn’t inspire much confidence playing outside during his rookie season. Yet every year, we see college tackles with no NFL experience successfully transition to guard. Isn’t it possible that Suamataia could make the adjustments that many other players have made in his second year? And if he can’t, the Chiefs have other players who can step in.
Barnwell is right: there are reasons to be worried about Kansas City’s offensive line. But it’s not like the Chiefs haven’t been here before.
