Kansas City Chiefs Training Camp: Stock Up, Stock Down

Stock Up: Cairo Santos
Stock Down: Ryan Succop

When I read that KC had a young rookie kicker with a huge leg in camp I figured it was a mix of wanting a second leg in camp to not tire Succop out and wanting to scout a young player with upside in case Succop got hurt during the season and they needed to find a replacement. The idea of replacing a proven NFL caliber kicker with a rookie that was just 16 of 23 on FGs as a senior in college seems crazy to me.

However, watching Santos kick in person you can see why the Chiefs are giving him a serious look. The guy has an absolute cannon of a leg. On Saturday Santos did all the kicking on the field goals that were part of the full team part of practice. Andy Reid later said that they were rotating days and that Succop would be up next, but just the fact that the Chiefs think enough of Santos to have him rotate days says to me that they are giving him a serious look. The fact that the rookie was up first, not the veteran, says even more. There may not be a player with more on the line in preseason games than Santos. If he can prove that he can make kicks in actual games he may well earn himself the job.

The stock down for Succop really doesn’t have anything to do with his performance. Succop is a solid, but not spectacular NFL kicker. He will probably never make a Pro Bowl, but he’s not a kicker that I worry about losing KC games either. What Succop really has going against him is his contract. On a team that is hurting for cap space, if they feel like a younger, cheaper kicker with a stronger leg can make kicks consistently, Succop’s roster spot is in serious trouble. With age, contract, and leg strength in his favor the kicking job is there for the taking for Santos.