What if Eric Berry isn’t back to his dominant self for the Chiefs
By John McCarty
The Chiefs are counting heavily upon the return of star safety Eric Berry to be a steadying force. What if he’s not up to the task?
The most unique supplemental draft perhaps since Bernie Kosar wrapped up with the Kansas City Chiefs neither selecting the top corners or signing the top safety. While that’s not totally unexpected, it does require to look at the defensive back position and wonder if perhaps the coaches and front office are placing an unwarranted level of confidence in the defensive backfield. Perhaps they believe the return of Eric Berry will save them. Lets hope not.
The following are the cornerbacks under contract with the Chiefs past the upcoming 2018 season.
- Kendall Fuller
- Tremon Smith
That is it. Both projected ‘outside’ cornerbacks David Amerson and Steve Nelson are free agents after this season. Amerson was awful for a bad Oakland Raiders team last year, and Nelson’s greatest claim to Chiefs fame is the bear hugging lessons he provided Marcus Peters near the end of the Jets game that led to Peters’ flag-tossing meltdown.
Fuller is eligible to be a free agent after the 2019 season and Smith is a 6th round rookie out of Central Arkansas. Needless to say, if you want to pick a position with an undrafted rookie can make the roster, this would be the spot. Depth is a serious concern.
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This is why there are concerns about Berry’s ability to truly save the defensive backfield. This isn’t about being anti Eric-Berry at all. Instead it’s pointing out the reality that Berry is returning from his third season-ending ‘issue’ during his career (a torn ACL, an Achilles injury and Hodgkins lymphoma). He’s also approaching the age of 30 (near season’s end). What impact will the departures of Marcus Peters and Derrick Johnson play in impacting Berry’s 2019 season? Will Berry truly return to 100% from the injury?
Another concern about Berry is who will be playing next to him. Veteran Ron Parker lined up next to Berry for the past couple seasons and, with his departure, it appears likely that rookie Armani Watts will be the guy. What impact will Berry having to help a rookie game by game, play by play impact his ability to operate freely?
There are a lot of variables that are impacting the return of Berry. Does he have to help pick up the slack in rush defense that was normally the charge of Derrick Johnson? If he does, what impact does that have on pass coverage? If he stays deep, what impact will that have on the rush defense? Will there be communication issues with whomever is lining up next to him this season? How much will the loss of Peters and his ability to eliminate a part of the field impact Berry in coverage?
These are all questions that will be answered by play on the football field this season. Perhaps all the questions and/or scenarios I’ve brought up are irrelevant and the Chiefs defense will be the greatest thing ever. Or maybe it won’t.
On that note, if you want to start analyzing the 2019 draft and are having issues deciding what position to start looking at, I’d recommend corner. Not only is depth an issue, but so will talent. There will be a need at multiple levels at this position group after the season. I’d expect one of the first three picks to be a corner, and maybe more.