Skip to main content

Three Free Agents That Could Help the Chiefs On the Defensive Line

With injuries piling up on both sides of the ball, the bye week couldn't have come at a better time for the Kansas City Chiefs. Defensive end Taco Charlton is the latest to go down with an injury and with fellow defensive end Alex Okafor dealing with constant hamstring issues, the Chiefs are faced with depleted depth all across the defensive front. So what should be the Chiefs' do to address the issue?

With injuries piling up on both sides of the ball, the bye week couldn't have come at a better time for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Defensive end Taco Charlton is the latest to go down with an injury and with fellow defensive end Alex Okafor dealing with constant hamstring issues, the Chiefs are faced with depleted depth all across the defensive front. 

So what should be the Chiefs' do to address the issue?

That was just one of the many questions we fielded on today's Roughing the Kicker podcast where two of Arrowhead Report's finest, Conner Christopherson and Jordan Foote, joined me to answer some questions from the Most Valuable Listeners.

It's no secret the Chiefs are hurting for defensive end help after having several of their depth pieces go down with injuries. Going into the season, the defensive line was one of the strongest units depth-wise on the team, but now they are faced with trying to find answers on the outside.

Here are three free agents Kansas City could call upon to help bolster its depth.

Cameron Wake

The 38-year-old is coming off of a one-year stint with the Tennessee Titans in 2019 where he recorded four tackles and 2.5 sacks in nine games. Wake has played at both left and right defensive end so he has the potential to play opposite of Frank Clark. Wake is in the stage of his career where he could want to win a title and Kansas City could be an ideal place for him to do that while getting some snaps as a rotational player.

Vic Beasley

Beasley underwhelmed in his limited time with the Titans this season. The 28-year-old only recorded three tackles and one forced fumble in five games in Nashville this year and he only saw 22% of the Titans defensive snaps. Beasley was cut by Tennessee a week ago and has yet to be claimed off waivers. Although he's listed as an outside linebacker, Beasley too has experience at the left and right end positions but his youth could be a more appealing factor over Wake. 

Clay Matthews

This is the most interesting of the three options. While Matthews went unsigned this offseason, he has made it clear he still wants to play. In his first year away from Green Bay last season, Matthews recorded 37 tackles, 11 quarterback hits, nine tackles for loss, eight sacks and forced two fumbles for the Los Angeles Rams in 13 games. Matthews is in a similar boat as Wake is. At 34-years-old, he's nearing the end of his phenomenal career and may want to add another trophy to the case. His talent would benefit the Chiefs and could provide them enough production to weather the injury storm.

For more daily Kansas City Chiefs coverage, subscribe to the Roughing the Kicker Chiefs Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.

Want a shortcut? Start listening to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or iHeartRadio.

Have something you want to tell the show? Tweet using #RTKpod to submit questions and comments to be shared on air.