The Kansas City Chiefs were busy this offseason, bolstering their roster for yet another run at the Super Bowl with moves in free agency, the trade market and through the draft.
The bulk of those acquisitions were along the offensive line – where the Chiefs added seven players who weren't with the organization last year – but Kansas City's offseason also included moves at wide receiver, tight end, tailback, defensive tackle, linebacker and edge rusher, among other spots.
It was an impressive haul, particularly for a team already rich in talent, and it caught the attention of CBS Sports in their recent rankings of the top offseasons around the league. Kansas City checked in at No. 4 in those rankings, trailing only the Browns, Buccaneers and Chargers.
Here's a portion of what analyst Cody Benjamin had to say about the Chiefs' offseason:
"They had one priority after the Super Bowl: improve Patrick Mahomes' protection. Even if one or two of their additions up front doesn't pan out, they're already better off than they were. Acquiring [Orlando] Brown via trade was a creative way to fill the long-term left tackle need."
The Chiefs added a plethora of talent to their offensive line over the last several months, including the trade for Brown that brought one of the top young offensive tackles in all of football to Kansas City. The 25-year-old Brown allowed just six sacks in 48 career games for the Baltimore Ravens over the last three seasons, and since taking over at left tackle in Week 9 of last year, he didn't allow a single sack or quarterback hit.
Kansas City also signed a handful of versatile players in Joe Thuney, Kyle Long and Austin Blythe – each of whom have experience at multiple positions along the offensive line.
Thuney has primarily served as a guard during his impressive career, earning All-Pro honors at the position in 2019. He was ranked as the No. 13 free agent of the offseason according to Pro Football Focus and is widely considered one of the top guards in all of football.
Blythe, meanwhile, has extensive experience at both guard and center while Long, who is currently working his way back from an injury sustained during Organized Team Activities (OTAs), can play either guard or tackle at a high level.
The Chiefs continued to add talent up front in the draft, too, by selecting center Creed Humphrey in the second round and guard Trey Smith in the sixth round. Humphrey was identified by experts as one of the best centers in this year’s class and Smith, who was an All-American at the University of Tennessee, has been projected by many to be one of the steals of the draft at pick No. 226.
It was an impressive overhaul, to say the least, but the Chiefs' moves didn't just concentrate on the offensive line. They also added one of the premier pass-rushing defensive tackles in football by signing Jarran Reed, whose 19 sacks over the last three seasons rank ninth among all interior linemen. The addition of Reed could potentially allow the Chiefs’ coaching staff to deploy defensive tackle Chris Jones in a variety of ways this upcoming season.
Kansas City also added linebacker Nick Bolton in the second round of the draft, edge rusher Joshua Kaindoh in the fourth round, safety Will Parks in free agency and traded for former first-round pick Mike Hughes at cornerback.
Offensively, the Chiefs drafted tight end Noah Gray and wide receiver Cornell Powell – both in the fifth round – in addition to signing veteran tight end Blake Bell, tailback Jerick McKinnon and fullback Michael Burton.
Those are just some of the Chiefs' acquisitions this offseason and don't include Kansas City's undrafted free agent class or some of the other under-the-radar signings that could pay dividends when the season rolls around.
It all demonstrates the Chiefs' collective hunger – from the players to the front office – to not only get back to the Super Bowl this season, but to raise another banner at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
