Kansas City Chiefs should look offensive tackle in 2019 NFL Draft

Moving forward then

Looking ahead one year, it’s likely that Cam Erving is headed out the door and that Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz are both in a financial position where a release wouldn’t saddle the team with an overwhelming cap hit. Looking forward two years, both starting tackles become even easier to replace and will be nearing 30 (if not already for Schwartz).

Given this timeline, then, the Chiefs need to not worry about tackle in this year’s draft because they have other needs, the talent isn’t really there when they select and they’ve already made their investment in Erving. For better or worse, he deserves the chance to develop and prove his mettle on the field.

In 2019, however, all of this changes. The Chiefs will be in a good position to groom a nice young tackle, someone with the sort of floor who can immediately step in if need be, yet also with a ceiling to potentially take over for one of the incumbents. It’s the sort of pick you’d expect from a team picking in the twenties in the first round.

That’s why it makes sense for the Chiefs to wait and see if they can land a Trey Adams or Jonah Williams or Greg Little in the 2019 NFL Draft. The competition would push Fisher and Schwartz and yet would provide some serious security heading into the season. By the time 2020 rolled around, the Chiefs could choose to employ their long-term tackles once again or turn the page with a talented young player.

Then again, the Chiefs could stay the course with exactly the pairing they have now: knowing they have good-to-great players at both ends with appropriate financial commitments who should remain in their prime for years to come.

At the very least, Brett Veach would enjoy his options.