Chiefs Don’t Get Enough Credit for Solving Prime 2025 Issue

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Joe Thuney earlier this month completed arguably the best three-year stretch by an offensive guard in league history.

After first-team All-Pro selections with the Chiefs in 2023 and ’24, he not only earned that honor again with the Bears in 2025, he also captured the inaugural Protector of the Year as the NFL’s best lineman.

Oh, he also helped the Chiefs to Super Bowl berths from 2022-24 and hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in 2022 and ’23. But lost in Thuney’s departure was something the Chiefs achieved.

Brett Veach, Andy Reid, Andy Heck and even Chiefs players don’t get enough credit for orchestrating the Thuney transition, from concept through gamey-by-game reality.

At this time 12 months ago, the biggest question mark facing the Kansas City organization wasn’t simply how they were going to solve left tackle. It was how they were going to solve their issue at left guard, too.

Thuney actually played both during a disastrous 2024 in which Andy Reid benched Kingsley Suamataia two games into the season. The rookie struggled mightily in his first NFL action at left tackle. After experimenting with several replacements, Reid and Heck finally settled on Thuney at left tackle and Mike Caliendo at left guard.

caliend — Aug 22, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs guard Mike Caliendo (66) at the line of scrimmage against the Chicago Bears during the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Draft capital

After the Super Bowl loss, the cap-strapped Chiefs lacked the ability to sign Thuney to a long-term contract. So, they traded him to Chicago for a fourth-round selection in 2026.

Financial implications

The money the Chiefs saved by trading Thuney to the Bears freed up cash to re-sign several players, including Hollywood Brown, Kareem Hunt, Charles Omenihu and JuJu Smith-Schuster. Looking back at 2025, Kansas City never would’ve won six games without that group. The Chiefs also were able to purchase a monumental insurance policy for Josh Simmons; they signed Jaylon Moore six weeks before drafting Simmons.

The financial benefits of the trade continue into this spring, too.

brett veac — Feb 27, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach speaks during a press conference at the NFL Scouting Combine at Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Suamataia shined

Simmons had a bulldog grip on the starting left-tackle role the minute Veach drafted him at the end of Round 1 in April. But the rookie needed a personal leave of absence in October and then missed the final five games after season-ending wrist surgery.

But Suamataia resurrected his career. He started all 17 games at left guard and missed only a handful of snaps all season – at Denver while doctors evaluated him for a concussion. Suamataia improved each week and has a bright future on what should be a great Chiefs front in 2026.

And lost in his emergence at left guard is the fact that the Chiefs repurposed a valuable draft pick. Kansas City took Suamataia in the second round (63rd overall) of the 2024 draft. Over the course of 12 months, that pick now looks fantastic.

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