Chiefs’ expensive acquisition of Mitchell Schwartz makes sense in AFC West

The left tackle position has long been considered the most important one on the offensive line. The protector of the quarterback’s blindside, he’s the one who often blocks the league’s best edge rushers.

But in the Chiefs’ division, the AFC West, the right tackle spot might be just as important. Four of the league’s best edge rushers — Denver’s Von Miller, Oakland’s Khalil Mack, Kansas City’s Justin Houston and San Diego’s Melvin Ingram — each rush off that side, meaning there’s no place for lumbering, predominant-run blocking right tackles in this division.

That is, to be sure, one of the reasons the Chiefs felt comfortable giving former Cleveland Browns right tackle Mitchell Schwartz a lucrative five-year deal worth $33 million during free agency. That is the most guaranteed money being paid to a veteran right tackle, according to J.I. Halsell, a former Washington cap analyst who runs NFLContractMetrics.com.

With left tackle Eric Fisher said to have a cap number of $7 million in 2016, the Chiefs have a lot of money tied up in the position this year, but Chiefs coach Andy Reid thinks it’s worth it.

“(It’s) huge,” Reid said on a recent conference call. “You want to make sure you’re secure on the edge and at the same time, give the quarterback an opportunity to step up when he needs to with a firm inside three. Having two tackles, particularly in this division, ends up being very important.”

Reid isn’t the only coach who feels this way. Two of the coaches who face the Chiefs twice a year in the AFC West — Oakland’s Jack Del Rio and San Diego’s Mike McCoy — spoke this week at the NFL’s annual meetings about the importance of having a right tackle who can pass protect.

“You better have good linemen and you better have good design, because there's a lot of great pass rushers in this division,” Del Rio said. “And it starts with the Super Bowl MVP. Von is a special, special guy off the edge, and I think Khalil has a chance to be that. That’s part of surviving in our division — you better get ready to block those guys.”

McCoy agreed.

“It’s critical (to have two), because that’s what we see week-in and week-out in our division, teams that have two (good) guys coming off the edge,” McCoy said. “... Anytime you can add a good tackle to your roster, facing the type of rushers we have, it’s critical to your passing game.”

Schwartz seems to fit the bill. The AFC North coaches who faced him twice a year since 2012 — Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin, Baltimore’s John Harbaugh and Cincinnati’s Marvin Lewis — all spoke highly of him this week.

“Big, strong, good rangy right tackle,” Harbaugh said. “Very physical, very smart player. I would see that he’d be Andy Reid’s kind of guy. Seems like a smart, tough, great competitor.”

Tomlin agreed.

“I thought he was a solid, starter-capable right tackle,” Tomlin said. “He’s available. He’s got durability. I don’t know he missed any game that we were scheduled to play against him. I think he’s a good player.”

Lewis concurred as well. “I think he’s been a hard-working guy,” said Lewis.

Lewis’ former offensive coordinator, Hue Jackson, is now the head coach of the Browns, who lost Schwartz to the Chiefs in free agency.

“We’d love to bring all of our players back, but it didn’t work that way,” Jackson said. “He’s a Kansas City Chief now, so we need to leave it at that.”

The Browns’ pain is the Chiefs’ gain. Schwartz figures to be a plug-and-play option at right tackle for a Chiefs team that surrendered 46 sacks in 2015 (tied for the sixth-most in the league). His pass-blocking grade of 86.8 in 2015 was the seventh-best mark in the league, and second-best among right tackles.

Schwartz’s presence also allows the Chiefs’ 2015 starter at right tackle, Jah Reid, to shift down to a guard position, where he was more impressive in limited action last season.

During a conference call with reporters, Schwartz made it clear that he takes pride in his durability — the former second-round pick hasn't missed a snap in four seasons — and pass protection, as he often uses his superb balance and technique to corral dangerous edge rushers.

“I’ve always been big on technique — that was engrained in me in college by my offensive line coach, Jim Michalczik at the time,” Schwartz said. “He was huge on technique, and technique kind of overcomes all the other things. You need to be strong, you need to be athletic, you need to be fast, (but) having good technique makes you a solid player.

“And then if you add the speed and the strength on top of that, it can make you into a pretty good player.”

Good technique is important, he said, because in the heat of battle against elite athletes like Miller and Mack, one has to largely rely on instincts.

“You’re not thinking about too much, you just have to react to things, and by that point, it’s all muscle memory — you have to have a good foundation for what you’re doing,” Schwartz said. “That’s how you get good at anything, you just have to practice it over and over and keep striving for perfection.”

When it comes to the latter, Schwartz said he learned a ton by flanking star left tackle Joe Thomas — a nine-time Pro Bowler and likely future Hall of Famer — for the last four years.

“I couldn’t have had a better player to go with,” Schwartz said. “And then he turned out to be a great guy and a great friend to me, as well, to help me out.”

Schwartz’s durability and skills in pass protection aren’t the only things he’s got going for him. Reid confirmed this week that Schwartz, a former college left tackle, could slide to the left side in a pinch.

“Yeah, I think he probably could play anywhere along the line,” Reid said. “He’s highly intelligent, not only in the books, but also football-wise. I think we could probably swing him wherever, left tackle included, if needed.”

However, Reid also made it clear that the expectation is that Schwartz and Fisher will form a strong pass-blocking tandem in an elite pass-rush division. That’s what he was signed for.

“Fish (Eric Fisher) did a good job for us, so that would be more of an injury thing than anything,” Reid said.

“Listen, we know the Schwartz family, we had Geoff here, and we appreciated his time here. He helped get us started in our first year here. His brother is similar, he’s very durable and very intelligent and a hard worker. We like all of those things. Knock on wood, I’m not sure he’s missed a game, he’s reliable there. And reliability ends up being an important thing in this league.”

This story was originally published March 25, 2016 at 8:13 PM with the headline "Chiefs’ expensive acquisition of Mitchell Schwartz makes sense in AFC West."