Chiefs rookie Lucas Niang elects to opt out of 2020 regular season, source says
The Chiefs will play the 2020 regular season without one of their draft picks.
Rookie offensive lineman Lucas Niang, the Chiefs’ third-round selection, has elected to opt out of the upcoming season, a source familiar with the situation confirmed Thursday morning with The Star.
Niang, who provided the versatility to play tackle and guard, becomes the third Chiefs player to opt out during the COVID-19 pandemic. He joins right guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, who was the first player in the league to opt out, and running back Damien Williams.
The Chiefs had projected that Niang, who mostly played tackle at TCU, would move inside and compete at guard.
Without the rookie, the Chiefs still appear to have adequate depth at the guard position with Mike Remmers, Kelechi Osemele, Andrew Wylie, Ryan Hunter and Nick Allegreti. The team also has options among undrafted rookie free agents Darryl Williams and Yasir Durant.
Martinas Rankin, who started five games at guard in 2019, is currently on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list while he continues to recover from a season-ending knee injury suffered in Week 10 of last season.
Remmers and Osemele, both offseason veteran free-agent additions, are the likely front-runners at the guard positions.
The league-wide deadline for players to either decide to play or opt out this fall is Thursday at 3 p.m. Central Time.
The NFL Network first reported the news of Niang’s decision.
