Quote:
Originally Posted by kccrow
So you're of the opinion that ILB isn't a tremendous need and are willing to go into 2019 with he shit stack the Chiefs have now? Interesting. There are two players I've been looking at of late that are generating some 1st round buzz and I seen one of them mocked to KC recently. Those two players are OC Elgton Jenkins and ILB Te'Von Coney.
I figure I might as well talk about them here rather than another thread because they both fit against the approach you've taken here. On Jenkins, I'm kind of on the same train of thought you are, with settling for Reiter and a veteran like Devey. That said, Andy does like a lot more athleticism at the position having been a part of drafting Morse and Jason Kelce at the position. Jenkins does, absolutely, fit the narrative in terms of being that type of center that can get out and block in space. That said, neither was anything near a round 1 pick. I'd put more stock into him looking at an athletic guy late like Sean Rawlings out of Mississippi who reminds me a lot of Kelce coming out.
Moving onto Coney, I think he's a guy that really fits a KC early need. I don't know that you can walk into next season without attempting to make a significant upgrade at ILB. I see it as the weakest link of the defense, far worse than CB or S at this point. The coverage breakdowns in the shallow middle of the field are horrendous. The inability to come up and fill gaps and make tackles in the backfield is troubling. This defense is kind of a ship without a rudder and lacks a tone-setter. I don't know that Coney is a round 1 pick, but I do know I've watched less talented players go in round 1 based on athleticism and I'd be willing to wager Coney will be in that 4.6 area. I think he's more of a come up and get him in 2 guy. In any event, I think you need to come away with a day 2 talent at a minimum at the position. I'd love to say it's a position you could look at again in FA, but history doesn't really bode well there. It doesn't happen often that an ILB hits FA and actually ends up being a good pickup. The few that look like good options and are paper FAs now probably won't hit the market, such as CJ Mosely and Jordan Hicks.
I do like the direction overall, with all that said. CB and S are big needs and pretty well have to be addressed this year. Adding a DE to replace Bailey is critical, but there are a ton of options there in FA and I wouldn't be surprised if that's the approach Veach takes there. I don't think you'll be getting a world beater, but you probably could get as serviceable a guy as any mid-round pick. I also wouldn't be at all surprised to see Bailey retained on a 3-year deal but he runs too hot and cold for my tastes.
Onto the actual picks, I like them. I don't think Mullen is a CB I'd trade very far up for, and certainly not into the top 12. You easily have Murphy, Baker, and Williams ahead of him so I don't think you have to get up there. Hell, you can move up 8-9 slots with a 3rd rounder and that will probably put you easily in range of him.
Taylor Rapp, I really like him a bunch. He's probably my favorite safety in this class. I just have a hard time projecting him. I think he's an end of 1 guy, to be honest. I don't think he'll be around at the end of 2 though. The more I've been thinking about the couple good safeties in this class, the more I think Veach will have to be aggressive to get one and that includes the one I've mocked in Abram. That said, FA could be a major factor at the position with some good stop-gaps looking to be available.
I'm not at all on board with the idea of trading Duvernay-Tardif. Just like you talked about putting those years into Ford and him being a good pass rusher that you have to retain, Tardif is a guy you put those years into and is one of the best guards in football right now. He's the mobile, nasty type that Reid covets. He's going nowhere, I'd bank on it.
Altogether, I feel like Veach left this team with some major holes unfilled last offseason on defense and now they are compounded heavily with the addition of new ones. It's going to be interesting to see how he attacks this.
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To address your points:
I don't think ILB is as much of a need as others on this site do. I do think it's our weakest spot on defenses and may ultimately be our demise in this year's playoffs, but I think the ILBs we have this year will all be better next year.
* Hitchens will ostensibly be healthier and more physically fit
* O'Daniel will likely gain 10-15 pounds
* Ragland, blah, I still don't think is useful and in most mocks I've been cutting him and signing a thumper from somewhere else
* Smith is an acceptable stopgap, Ben Niemann will likely get better
The two players you
need to improve are Hitchens and O'Daniel, and I believe they're going to be more physically ready with a year's worth of experience.
I also believe -- even though I cut Berry in this mock -- that Berry will be on this team in 2019 and that will help the ILBs as well, as he takes a ton of pressure off against tight ends, freeing the ILBs up to focus on RBs and the run game.
I think all your musings on the center position are reasonable.
Ultimately, I just don't think we have the resources to plug every hole, so I spend my priority resources on Ford and Hill. And I try to free up resources by ridding the team of two players that -- you're right -- the Chiefs will probably bring back for 2019 in Berry and LDT. I just think LDT can be replaced effectively because (a.) we already have, and (b.) Andy Heck is a goddamn monster of a coach. Guy has hit homeruns with every shred of talent we've given him.
With the top draft resources getting sucked up by the DL (which, if we let Bailey walk, will badly need an infusion of talent) and the secondary, I think that means you just bank on ILB improvement from the guys we already have.