The Kansas City Chiefs have officially signed their top draft pick from the 2018 draft class in second round pick Breeland Speaks.
The Kansas City Chiefs are slowly but surely getting their rookie class under contract as the offseason progresses. The latest pick to sign was also the first one selected in defensive end/linebacker Breeland Speaks.
General manager Brett Veach traded up in the second round to select Speaks with the No. 46 pick overall in the draft, a move he later explained was due to a run on pass rushers. For the Chiefs, Speaks was one of the top rated available players on the board and the team moved up to secure help at a position of need.
The Chiefs envision Speaks as a three-down defender, not just some situational pass rushing help, which means if he can learn the offense well enough as the season moves on, he could supplant Dee Ford on the outside and relegate the former Auburn product to pass rushing downs.
Speaks is a heavy edge rusher at 6’3, 285 lbs., 20 or more pounds heavier than Justin Houston on the other side. However, Speaks has shown the athleticism on game tape and in practice for the Chiefs to experiment with bringing him in at outside linebacker rather than defensive end. Then again, the Chiefs’ defensive scheme will still likely employ Speaks along the line at times as they employ more versatile subpackages.
Most importantly for the Chiefs in this offseason and draft class was the addition of Speaks, Derrick Nnadi and others into a new front seven, one that has been reworked considerably to add athleticism, youth, stamina and versatility.
Speaks had 61 tackles and 7 sacks last season for Ole Miss.