Arrowhead Report

Why Insider Believes Chiefs Wisely Invested Resources at Left Tackle

Rapoport: The Kansas City Chiefs are 'in a good place' with Josh Simmons, Jaylon Moore.

Zak Gilbert

Oct 12, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes left tackle Josh Simmons is carted off the field during the first half of the NCAA football game against the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium
Oct 12, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes left tackle Josh Simmons is carted off the field during the first half of the NCAA football game against the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Josh Simmons didn’t remove his helmet; his head drooped toward his immobilized left knee as athletic trainers carted him off the field at Autzen Stadium on Oct. 12. Six games into his senior season at Ohio State, his future was suddenly murkier than when he awoke that morning in Eugene, Ore.

But while the torn patellar tendon ended his college career and plunged him to the bottom of the first round in the NFL draft, the blessing-in-disguise injury landed him with the league’s resident dynasty in Kansas City. Plus, the Chiefs’ own left-tackle issues wound up removing the pressure from his broad shoulders by launching his career next to free agent Jaylon Moore.

“To me, they stand in a really, really good place,” said Ian Rapoport on Tuesday’s edition of The Insiders. “What the Kansas City Chiefs did was not just draft Simmons in the first round; he fell to them, and this is someone I think they really secretly had their eyes on the entire time. They were really happy with where he was medically coming back from a torn patellar tendon.”

 Before Oct. 12, most NFL teams had top-10 grades on the Buckeyes' tackle. But after the injury, not all teams were aligned on his ability to rebound. The Chiefs were not one of those teams.

“I think they tried to keep it quiet,” Rapoport said, “because this is the player they wanted, just because he's such an unbelievably talented tackle despite the injury. But they also didn’t want to rush him. Giving him some time off during the spring, making sure he has days to rehabilitate.”

Moore is a bit of a gamble, too. The understudy to future Hall of Famer Trent Williams since San Francisco drafted Moore in 2021, he started just 12 games. General manager Brett Veach said Moore capitalized on his limited opportunities and assembled an impressive body of work when he got his snaps. That’s why Rapoport sees the Moore-Simmons combination as resources well-invested resource.

Whether Moore or Simmons is the Chiefs’ left tackle in Brazil on Sept. 5 against the Chargers, they’re actually in solid shape compared to the last time they lost a Super Bowl.

“They signed Jaylon Moore to come in and be their left tackle until whenever, basically until Simmons is ready, or maybe Simmons starts out as the swing tackle,” Rapoport said. “Most important thing for the Chiefs is they have talent there, and they have depth there to not be caught short at one of the most important positions on the football field.

“Seeing the resources that they used to address this underscores how important and essential they believe a good left tackle is.”

Count Patrick Mahomes in that school of thought.

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Zak Gilbert
ZAK GILBERT

Since his freshman year at the University of Colorado, Zak Gilbert has worked 30 years in sports, including 18 NFL seasons. He's spent time with four NFL teams, serving as head of communications for both the Raiders and Browns. A veteran of nine Super Bowls, he most recently worked six seasons in the NFL's New York league office.