Chiefs rookies: Who produces most in 2016?
Who will play the most out of the Kansas City Chiefs’ rookies in 2016?
After all was set and done last weekend, the Kansas City Chiefs took nine players in the 2016 NFL Draft. Of the group, there were no clear starters, perhaps setting us up for a very long evaluation of this class.
In 2016, the Chiefs will look very similar to the 2015 version sans Sean Smith while adding Mitch Schwartz. As for the rookies, a few have a chance to crack the starting lineup. Let’s look at the situations…
Chris Jones
Jones is going to see some snaps, but he won’t start barring injury. Jones is going to sit behind Allen Bailey and Jaye Howard for the most part, gobbling up the snaps that MIke DeVito would have gotten had he re-signed. Don’t look at Jones and think immediate plug-and-play. Think 20-30 snaps with full-on intensity.
KeiVarae Russell
This is my pick for most impact. Russell showed the ablilty to play press coverage at Notre Dame and has great athleticism. He is going to benefit from Emmitt Thomas and Al Harris, along with a stud like Marcus Peters on the other side. I believe he starts opposite Peters, with Phillip Gaines kicking inside.
Parker Ehinger
This is a sneaky one. Ehinger is a guy who played a ton of tackle in college at Cincinnati but projects as a quality guard. COuld the Chiefs take a chance and start him between Mitch Morse and Eric Fisher on the left side? My gut says no, because head coach Andy Reid has been publicly impressed with the maturation of Laurent Duvernay-Tardif. Still, worth watching in camp.
Next: Onto the other rooks...