What's Next for the Chiefs Without Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz?
The Kansas City Chiefs released both of their starting tackles on Thursday morning, moving on from left tackle Eric Fisher and right tackle Mitchell Schwartz, who were both returning from injuries with substantial salary cap hits. What's next for the Chiefs' offensive line?
This is obviously an enormous pair of moves for the Chiefs. Especially in light of the optimism Veach publicly showed about the timelines for Fisher and Schwartz just over a week ago, this news is legitimately surprising. Even though Veach's stated timeline for Fisher was met with skepticism, I had bought into the idea that Schwartz was going to be returning in 2021, even if Fisher was still a candidate to be released. Now, the Chiefs have some work to do.
In the 2020 NFL Draft, the Chiefs selected TCU tackle Lucas Niang in the third round. After opting out for the 2020 season due to COVID-19 concerns, Niang is now the leading in-house option at tackle despite having no NFL game tape.
In addition to Niang and the possibility of bringing back pending free agent lineman Mike Remmers, who played well at right tackle in 2020, I just can't see the Chiefs entering the 2021 NFL Draft with a void at left tackle. At this point, I'm expecting the Chiefs to add a starting-caliber left tackle in free agency with some of their newfound salary cap space, with Niang likely to start at right tackle and Remmers ready to step in if needed. This would allow the Chiefs to keep their options open with the No. 31 overall pick instead of being pigeonholed into taking a tackle in the first round.
Keep this in mind as we get closer to the draft: first-round picks are no guarantee, especially as you get towards the end of the round. Plus, even if the Chiefs have a handful of tackles they'd be happy to select at No. 31 overall, there's even less of a guarantee that any of those players will even be on the board when they pick. With a free agent starter on the left side, presuming they're comfortable with Niang on the right, the Chiefs can either draft a tackle who can compete with Niang or provide depth for a year, or they can bolster another position with their first pick and add depth to the o-line in the rest of the draft.
Read More: The Seven Days of Free Agency, Day 3: Offensive Line
