Arrowhead Report Roundtable: Kansas City Chiefs sign former first-round defensive end Taco Charlton
As reported by Terez Paylor of Yahoo Sports, the Kansas City Chiefs reportedly signed former Miami Dolphins defensive end Taco Charlton to a one-year deal. Charlton was taken in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The Arrowhead Report Roundtable breaks down the signing and tells what they like about the signing.
Joshua Brisco: Of course Brett Veach wanted to sign Taco Charlton. After the successful Emmanuel Ogbah reclamation project last year, it makes perfect sense that Charlton would be up next. The Chiefs got the underachieving 32nd overall pick in the 2016 draft last offseason, now they add the 28th overall pick from the 2017 draft. Charlton is another former top-32 pick that Steve Spagnuolo can use in his trademark defensive line rotation, and the relationship will likely work out well for both parties. (And if it doesn't, it's not likely to slow the Chiefs down in the long run.)
Tucker Franklin: Not only does Taco Charlton bring a great name to the Kansas City Chiefs, he also brings a great deal of talent. Although the former first-rounder has not lived up to the billing, Charlton had one of the best years of his career in 2019. Charlton joins Michigan teammate Frank Clark and could become a good second option on the other side of Clark with Tanoh Kpassagnon. It's a low-risk, high-reward move for the Chiefs who are looking for depth along the defensive front. It seems he will work well with defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's scheme and could provide another option of attack for the Kansas City defense.
Sam Hays: The addition of Taco Charlton has to give you flashbacks to last year’s signing of Emmanuel Ogbah. Like Ogbah, Charlton is a former top-32 pick — Ogbah was pick No. 32, but in the second round because the Patriots had their pick taken for Deflategate — entering his fourth season in the league and he has struggled to produce much before coming to the Chiefs — Ogbah had a pressure rate of 7.8% before coming to Kansas City, Charlton currently stands at 8.2% — despite plenty of chances to do so. In 2019, Ogbah had a career year with a 10.8% pressure rate and a 70.1 PFF grade. Let’s hope the Chiefs can get the same out of Charlton.
Austin Johnson: Classic low risk, high reward. The knocks on Charlton, a former first-round pick, are more related to effort than talent, and you have to think the Chiefs are betting on Brendan Daly, Tyrann Matthieu, and Frank Clark — a former teammate of Charlton’s at the University of Michigan — to light Taco’s competitive fire. If they succeed, this is a move that could pay major dividends in 2020.
Conner Christopherson: Taco Charlton is a Spagnuolo defensive end through and through. Though the Michigan product has bounced around the league since being drafted in the first round by the Cowboys, his strengths as a player could be improved upon under Spagnuolo. This type of low-risk, high-reward signing by Brett Veach has become a staple of his team-building philosophy in the past few years, banking on players drafted early in past drafts to resurrect their careers in KC. So far, it hasn't been a bad strategy, though there are some misses like Darron Lee. Time will tell if Taco is another successful reclamation project, but it was worth a shot.
Mark Van Sickle: Whenever you can add a guy named Taco to the mix, you have to do it. On a more serious note, I think he can be a nice rotational depth piece along the defensive line. Last year, injuries piled up so high that the Chiefs felt like they needed to sign an over-the-hill Terrell Suggs for depth. Charlton can contribute and will likely be a fan favorite thanks to his incredible name.
Joe Andrews: Taco Charlton has the chance to make a new name for himself with the Kansas City Chiefs. His first few years in the league haven’t been much, but it appears defensive leaders such as Frank Clark are ready to show him the ways of championship swagger. If Taco doesn’t become a legend as Clark predicted in a tweet on Saturday morning, there isn’t much to lose.
Jacob Harris: I appreciate Brett Veach using my Need + Name formula almost immediately after I debuted it. It’d be nice if he hired me to work on his staff, but I entirely understand why I haven’t heard from the team. You don’t hire the Patrick Mahomes of football GM-ing and willingly make yourself the Alex Smith of your own job. As for Taco himself, I’m certain he will be liked by his coaches and teammates, and Mitch Holthus will get a lot of life out of stacking together 37 permutations of taco-related nicknames. This time next year, he will be Taco Champion.
