Don't Forget About Lucas Niang
Since the offseason began, there have been questions about what the Kansas City Chiefs ought to do at several key positions, mainly focusing on wide receiver, cornerback and edge defender. Among the next level of team needs, the right tackle position is clearly the weakest spot on the Chiefs' offensive line.
Debates about the state of the o-line have heated up even more in recent weeks, following numerous pass-rushing additions made by the Chiefs' divisional rivals and other conference contenders. The Los Angeles Chargers added Khalil Mack, Von Miller is with the Buffalo Bills, Randy Gregory landed with the Denver Broncos, and Chandler Jones is a Las Vegas Raider. The AFC is loaded with pass-rushers, even beyond stars who stayed with their teams this offseason.
Aug 20, 2021; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Lucas Niang (67) blocks against the Arizona Cardinals during the first half at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
With any of these top-level matchups, it’s quite likely that the Chiefs' starting right tackle will struggle to handle these great pass-rush units and players. With that being said, 2020 third-round pick Lucas Niang should get the Chiefs' first shot at right tackle.
Niang was a reliable piece for the Chiefs in much of 2021 when he was on the field, especially prior to injury. In Weeks 1-9, Niang had a 78.6 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF), which ranked 12th among all tackles in that span, and his pass blocking grade was neither good nor bad, coming away with a 59.1, only slightly below the average. After returning from his Week 9 injury, his only significant late-season snaps came against the Chargers in Week 14 before later suffering a season-ending injury. Against LA, PFF gave him his fourth-highest pass-blocking grade of the season at 69.5, which is considered above-average.
Sep 26, 2021; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Lucas Niang (67) prepares to block Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (42) during the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
In the seven games he played a significant number of snaps in 2021, he had an above-average (65+) grade in either run blocking or pass blocking in six of them. He was performing in at least one of the two areas adequately in just about every game. In two of those games, against the Ravens and Giants, he earned a 70+ grade in both pass-blocking and run-blocking, making for a really good game all-around.
In 2021, Niang was nursing injuries for much of the season (including three separate mid-season injuries, causing him to miss two games, four games and the whole postseason, respectively) all while he was playing his first football in nearly two years. (Niang's college career at TCU ended in October 2019 due to injury, then he opted out of the 2020 NFL season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.) Ultimately, Niang had a solid rookie season by an objective standard and a great season when considering those obstacles.
Unfortunately for Niang, he was also outshined by two better rookie offensive linemen who were more the flavor of the month: center Creed Humphrey and right guard Trey Smith.
Nov 21, 2021; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (25) celebrates with guard Trey Smith (65) and center Creed Humphrey (52) after scoring against the Dallas Cowboys during the first half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Looking at the perception of Niang a little closer, Niang's health is the more minor issue in his career so far. I believe the opt-out year and the high level of rookie offensive line play next to him in 2022 have pushed Niang out of favor with many.
For a player who hadn’t played in two years and then dealt with constant injuries, Niang did his job, and I believe 2022 will be more true to who Niang really is as a football player, as long as he just has better luck with injuries.
August 14, 2021; Santa Clara, California, USA; Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Lucas Niang (67) after the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach spoke about Niang's current offseason rehab status when asked for an update on April 22, and Veach said things have been going according to plan:
"Lucas, we did speak, I want to say, three days ago," Veach said. "Lucas actually flew in and got an update on his MRI. Everything was exactly where it needed to be. With the bigger guys, you’re always worried about [them], especially with that injury. I’ll certainly defer to Rick [Burkholder], but just in general, his timeline, Rick was excited about. The degrees of flexion and flexibility, it was a check-plus, which means it’s where it needs to be, and he was right on schedule. So, I don’t know if Rick has mentioned this but at a certain point he will, I think, him by the end of training camp is something that could happen. But he’s definitely on target to where he needs to be.”
With a healthy season, I believe we can start to see the version of Niang who many college defensive linemen dreaded facing, including former No. 1 overall pick Chase Young, who said Niang was the toughest tackle he faced in college. Niang also famously didn’t allow a single sack in his three years as a starter at TCU.
With his college dominance and the solid start to his professional career, there is still plenty to be excited about with Niang.
