Exploring the Kansas City Chiefs' Free Agency and Draft Options in 2021 (Part 2)
Last time, I took a look into some of the Chiefs' key options on the offensive side of the ball. As fun as that is, some of those positions of need are a reach. Do they really need a tight end or wide receiver? Let’s move on to the defense, where the Chiefs still have some concrete holes in their roster.
Edge Defender
This might be one of the worst position groups on the Chiefs, but it hasn’t received the attention that other position groups have from Chiefs fans. Frank Clark is a highly talented player, but besides him, the talent is minimal. Alex Okafor had a disappointing 2019, even when he played, and cutting him after 2020 would save nearly $6 million. Tanoh Kpassagnon has still not shown the ability to be a starting edge on the NFL level and will be a free agent next offseason. Breeland Speaks still hasn’t made any impact for the Chiefs in his two seasons with the team. A talent infusion could be helpful for KC, especially if they can’t keep Chris Jones long-term.
Draft Options: Wake Forest ED Carlos Basham Jr. and Miami ED Quincy Roche
The top draft-eligible edge prospect is Miami’s Gregory Rousseau, but he will not be making it to the Chiefs, so we will have to look at the next-best options. Carlos Basham Jr. was one of the most productive edge defenders in college football, having the fourth-most pressures (60) and the 11th-best PFF pass-rushing productivity rating (9.1) among Power Five players in 2019. Quincy Roche transferred to Miami after a dominant 2019 with Temple with an 11.0 PFF pass-rushing productivity rating (fourth among FBS players), a 93.5 PFF grade (second among FBS edge defenders) and 68 total pressures (second among FBS players). If you have the opportunity to watch Wake Forest or Miami this season, keep an eye on Basham, Roche and Rousseau, who should be some of the best players on the field in the game.
Best Free Agent: Broncos ED Von Miller
Miller won’t be a Chief and there is little chance he leaves the Broncos, but he’s the best of the group, so there’s that.
Favorite Free Agent Option: Bills ED Trent Murphy
Murphy will turn 30 next offseason and he was a top-32 edge defender in PFF grade in 2015, 2016 and 2019. In his last four seasons of play (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019), Murphy has a 10.7% pressure rate. Murphy also shouldn’t be too expensive, so it would be a reasonable move to make.
Linebacker
These next three years will be interesting for the Chiefs linebackers, to say the least. For the positive, Willie Gay Jr. looks like one of the most talented linebackers the Chiefs have had in recent memory. For the negative, Anthony Hitchens is currently slated to make more than $36 million after having two of the worst Chiefs linebacker seasons in recent history. Damien Wilson and Ben Niemann will be free agents after the 2020 season as well, so there is work to do with the linebackers.
Draft Options: Alabama LB Dylan Moses and Missouri LB Nick Bolton
The top linebacker for the 2021 Draft class will likely be Penn State’s Micah Parsons, so we’ll have to settle for the next-best choices, both of whom you may be familiar with. Dylan Moses missed 2019 with a torn ACL before the season started, but he had a good 2018 as one of the best tacklers in college football. Nick Bolton had a spectacular 2019 season with Mizzou, as the third-highest graded linebacker in the FBS for PFF with the highest coverage grade and tenth-highest run defense grade among FBS linebackers. Both would be solid options for the Chiefs in the late first round to solidify the position.
Best Free Agent: Saints LB Demario Davis
Davis was an NFL First-Team All-Pro and PFF’s highest-graded linebacker in 2019. He will not be a Kansas City Chief.
Favorite Free Agent Option: Bengals LB Josh Bynes
There has not been a linebacker more underrated or underpaid in the last couple of years than Josh Bynes. 2020 will be the second season that Bynes makes $1 million and he will be on his fourth team since 2014, but Bynes was PFF’s 14th highest-graded linebacker in 2018 with the Cardinals and PFF’s sixth highest-graded linebacker in 2019 with the Ravens. In 2020, he will play with the Bengals with a one-year, $1.6 million contract.
Cornerback
Cornerback is one of the most valuable positions in the league, but one that has been surprisingly set aside by the Chiefs. Some have argued that the Chiefs are able to ignore it because of how good the safeties are and how the scheme makes the job easier for the corners, and they have a good case with that, but the position could still use an injection of talent.
Draft Options: Ohio State CB Shaun Wade, Alabama CB Patrick Surtain II and Stanford CB Paulson Adebo
Wade and Adebo both could have entered the 2020 NFL Draft as high draft picks, but both decided to return for one more season in college and are likely round-one picks, especially Wade. Wade, Ohio State’s key slot corner, was a primetime player in 2019, allowing just 40+ coverage yards once all season, despite playing with two 2020 first-round corners Jeffrey Okudah (third overall pick) and Damon Arnette (19th overall pick) as the other options for quarterbacks to throw at. Surtain II, son of former two-time All-Pro and 2005-08 Chiefs CB Patrick Surtain, has been a force in his two seasons with the Crimson Tide. Surtain had an 83.5 PFF grade in 2019 with good grades in run defense, coverage and tackling. Adebo had a superstar year in 2018 with 23 combined interceptions and pass-breakups, which led all of college football. Adebo took a step back in 2019, but still had four interceptions and passer rating when targeted under 80.
Best Free Agent: 49ers CB Richard Sherman
Another guy who won’t be a Chief, but it’s fun to dream. One of the two best cornerbacks of the 2010s along with his rival Darrelle Revis.
Favorite Free Agent Option: Seahawks CB Quinton Dunbar
Editor's Note: Well, this was unforeseen. Seahawks CB Quinton Dunbar has now had an arrest warrant issued for himself and Giants CB DeAndre Baker, but now, Dunbar's attorney says that eyewitnesses clear Dunbar of the armed robbery charges. With all of that still up in the air, here's Sam's evaluation of Dunbar from before this story broke.
I have been raving about Dunbar, formerly a member of the Washington Redskins, for a while now. Dunbar had a good year in 2017, but his 2019 campaign was special. Four interceptions, just one missed tackle in 38 tackling attempts, a 56.9 passer rating when targeted and the second-best PFF grade among all NFL cornerbacks (87.6). Dunbar attempted to get his payday in Washington, but they were unable to come to an agreement and Dunbar demanded a trade. The Redskins complied and he was traded to the Seattle Seahawks. Dunbar will be a free agent after making $3.4 million in 2020 and time will tell how much the market respects Dunbar. God forbid he get the dreaded Tre Boston treatment of being a great player who is constantly underpaid.
That concludes the list of some of the defensive players I would like the Chiefs to look at most. This topic will be brought back in early 2021 when the picture becomes clearer, so stay tuned!
The referenced Pro Football Focus stats are a part of PFF Premium Stats, which comes with a PFF Elite subscription. Go to join.pff.com for more.
