Chiefs set 53-man roster, but expect more moves before Jacksonville season-opener
At 3 p.m. CT, the Chiefs had their league-mandated 53-man roster.
But that doesn’t mean general manager Brett Veach is done making moves.
After opening cut-down day with a trade to send UDFA cornerback Mark Fields to Minnesota for a conditional seventhth-round 2021 pick, Veach indicated he expects the team to be active on the waiver wire before the season opener against Jacksonville.
“We have a talented roster,” Veach said. “Like every other team in the NFL, we can get better. And, you know, we certainly made calls and there were some guys we were trying to target and trade for, and those things didn’t happen. It has to make sense for us, and we didn’t want to compromise assets that we didn’t feel made sense. ...
“We still have a few days here from when we kickoff in Jacksonville. I still think there’s a chance the roster is set for now, but there could be two or three changes that take place before we kick off on Sunday.”
At least one roster spot will open up pretty quickly, Veach said, with backup quarterback Chad Henne (ankle) expected to go on short-term Injured Reserve. Because Henne isn’t projected to miss the season, the Chiefs had to keep him on the initial 53-man roster before moving him to the list.
That spot could go to waived offensive lineman Jeff Allen, who was re-signed to the team during the preseason. He previously spent five seasons with the Chiefs, including part of last year, and two seasons with the Texans in between stints in KC.
“We’re not done yet,” Veach said. “I will say, without getting too much into it, with the rules, we’d like to have Henne available, designated to return, we just have to carry him a day on the roster.
“We have some time here and there will be at least one more roster spot we can add, and (Allen) may be in the mix along with some other guys.”
Another area likely to see movement is the cornerback group. The Chiefs parted ways with three young players on Friday — trading Fields and waiving D’Montre Wade and Herb Miller. That leaves the position group with four corners: Kendall Fuller, Bashaud Breeland, Charvarius Ward and rookie Rashad Fenton. Their versatility, coupled with the versatility of the safety group, gives the position some cushion while Veach evaluates the market for available help.
“We’re certainly looking for corners, and that’s one of the positions we’ll continue to look at,” Veach said. “Right now one of the things we have is good safety depth, and we have good safety versatility.
“One of the things we talked about was having Bashaud Breeland, Fuller and Ward. Fuller’s a guy that can play inside or outside. ... Rashad Fenton is a backup nickel. However, the Badger (Tyrann Mathieu) could play some nickel. (Jordan) Lucas has played corner in the past. (Juan) Thornhill can play some corner. So I think we’ll certainly be looking to add some corners.”
Unlike the cornerback position, the running back group seems pretty set after a trade sent Carlos Hyde to the Texans for offensive lineman Martinas Rankin. But the team could add a player plenty familiar with Veach and head coach Andy Reid. The Buffalo Bills cut veteran running back LeSean McCoy earlier in the day, and Veach said the team could be interested.
“We play a lot of common opponents, and we got to see him on tape, and he’s still a talented player,” Veach said. “He does a lot of great things in the pass game. If it’s official, like it’s been reported, I’m sure he’s a guy we’ll take a peek at, and we have a rapport with (him).”
Other notes from cut down day
Veach said tight end Deon Yelder (ankle) may be available to return this week, based on his early communication with the coaching and training staff. Yelder’s injury status likely contributed to rookie tight end Nick Keizer being cut, although he’s a good candidate for a practice squad spot.
Both wide receiver Gehrig Dieter (back) and defensive end Breeland Speaks (knee) were placed on season-ending Injured Reserve. The team’s initial evaluation of Speaks’ knee injury, suffered against Pittsburgh, was that it could be complicated enough to keep him out for the full year. But they were hopeful that second or third opinions could indicate otherwise. Eventually, though, they determined that even though Speaks’ ACL was intact, there was damage to the MCL that complicated the surgery and the recovery. “He’s such a young guy that there’s no way you want to designate a tag on him and rush him back out there because as Rick (Burkholder) communicated early on to us,” Veach said, “the best way to make sure this thing will fully heal is to just take care of it now.”
Veach was pleasantly surprised by the preseason performance of a handful of players: running back Darwin Thompson, defensive tackle Joey Ivie, offensive lineman Ryan Hunter and DE/LB Jeremiah Attaochu. While Thompson always had a roster spot, the other three surged in the preseason to grab positions. “ I think Jerry Attaochu really played his tail off that last game,” Veach said. “He was a guy we had some different dialogue with and 3-4 outside linebacker and defensive end and how to use him. I think he was a guy that really played his tail off that last game, and it was hard to argue with the production he had.” He also mentioned the strong finish Tremon Smith had that earned him a spot for his special teams value.
The Chiefs were excited about the Hyde-Rankin trade because of a need for depth at tackle. While they have younger guys like Nick Allegretti and Ryan Hunter developing at guard, there’s a gap at tackle. As a rookie, Rankin started three games at left tackle last season. “We like having a young guy that we can develop and we also have under contractual control for the next few years,” Veach said. “We thought it would be a good move for us to build some depth at the tackle position.”
The team waived defensive-turned-offensive lineman Kahlil McKenzie, a 2018 draft pick. But Veach didn’t shut the door on bringing him back in some capacity. “Nothing but positive on Kahlil,” Veach said. “He’s certainly done a great job. He continues to get better. We’ll see how this goes, and at some point he may be back here.”