We saw Chiefs OL in a new spot Tuesday. Will it signal a fresh position battle?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Chiefs tested Jaylon Moore at left guard, expanding his positional flexibility.
- Moore's limited left tackle reps suggest rookie Josh Simmons leads that battle.
- Moore also rotated at right tackle, subbing for injured starter Jawaan Taylor.
File this away as something to continue monitoring.
The Kansas City Chiefs tried something different with tackle Jaylon Moore on Tuesday, having him sub in with the 1s at left guard. Previously, Moore had only taken reps in training camp at left tackle and right tackle.
“He’s working all three of those spots, and really, (at) both guards. So he can do either,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said after Tuesday’s sweltering practice on Missouri Western’s campus. “We’re just working. We need everybody.”
How the Chiefs decide to utilize Moore — he joined the team in March on a two-year, $30 million contract — remains interesting because it might help reveal their true feelings about multiple offensive line spots.
Start with this: Moore was presumed to be in a training-camp competition for the left tackle spot with rookie Josh Simmons. However, Moore has barely been over at that position during camp.
What to make of that? It sure seems like Simmons, who took the first rep at left tackle in training camp, has the inside track toward starting there for Week 1’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
But what about right tackle? Moore filled in there a few days for Jawaan Taylor, who missed the start of training camp with a knee injury.
Taylor, however, returned to drills Sunday while stepping back in immediately as a starter on the offensive line.
The Chiefs seem unlikely to keep Taylor after this season, but for now, he figures to remain a key piece with a $27.4 million cap number in 2025 — the second-highest of any right tackle.
Both of those developments would seemingly leave the 6-foot-4, 311-pound Moore to back up the left and right tackle positions while serving as one of the NFL’s most expensive reserves.
That is ... if he’s not able to make a quick transition to left guard, where the Chiefs seem to have the most uncertainty heading into the season.
The projected starter there is second-year pro Kingsley Suamataia, who failed last season as a left tackle before the team opted to move him inside late in the year.
Reid said the Chiefs so far have been encouraged by Suamataia’s progress in his new role.
“He’s done a nice job. Has really battled in there, looks solid,” Reid said Tuesday. “We really like what we see.”
The fact that Moore rotated in with Suamataia at left guard on Tuesday, however, at least raises the question of whether the Chiefs are completely sold on Suamataia as a starter.
Reid confirmed Tuesday that Moore had never played guard previously in his career.
“He’s a good football player,” Reid said of Moore. “We just only have five spots, so you’ve got to try to move people around and make sure they can do everything.”
For his part, Suamataia said he embraced going against Moore and other teammates while looking to secure his standing as the team’s left guard.
“We love to compete across the board, whether at right guard, right tackle or back at left guard,” Suamataia said. “So we’re all just out here trying to compete and put our best foot forward. And whoever’s going to be there for that job, that’s where we’ll be at.”
KC still has some time to come to final decisions. The team has its first preseason game Aug. 9 at Arizona, then opens the regular season Sept. 5 against the Chargers in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
This story was originally published July 30, 2025 at 5:30 AM.
