Phin Phanatic On New Chiefs Alleman And Ndukwe

(Brian Miller is the lead writer over at Phin Phanatic. He was nice enough to shoot us over the scoop on Andy Alleman and Ikechuku Ndukwe. Be sure to visit P.P. — great stuff.)

Here’s what the Chiefs are getting in Ikechuku Ndukwe and Andy Alleman, the two offensive lineman acquired by trade with the Miami Dolphins.

Ndukwe: Aside from the fact that his name has been at times fun and at times a pain, Ndukwe was thrust into the line-up last year when OG starter Donald Thomas went down with an IR injury. Ndukwe didn’t perform horribly but he didn’t fair well at times either. The Phins made little progress in their rushing attack last season on the right side of the line where Ndukwe and Vernon Carey patrolled, outside of the WildCat formation at least. Ndukwe was serviceable as a back-up. Someone who could come in and relieve a tired starter but he struggled when put in position to be “THE” guy. At times, Ndukwe couldn’t do much in the pass protection game and his lack of footwork often put the Dolphins in a position of unloading the ball too soon. Ndukwe still has a way to go in his development, but the good news is that he is young and does have some potential. Will that potential be found in K.C.? Hard to say, but Ndukwe is likely a career back-up.

Alleman: Much easier to spell but you seem to always want to put an “R” before “man”. Alleman is the better of the two lineman here as he plays both RG and LG and is also a back-up center. He is the guy that the Chiefs will like…at least the team will. He is hard

working and versatile. Last season the Dolphins used Alleman to replace an inaffective Ndukwe at the RG position. Then, when former Phins center Samson Satele struggled, Satele moved to RG and Alleman took over at center. Shortly thereafter, LG Justin Smiley went down for the year and Alleman was moved to the LG spot.

Alleman isn’t going to knock fans out with his play, but he is depth for any teams unit who may be concerned about multiple line positions. In Miami, Alleman became expendable because of some rookie emergence and a few other versatile free agents that Miami coaches were more comfortable with.