The Number Three Quarterback
The Contenders:
Matt McGloin and Chase Litton
Look, I’m not going to sit here and tell you that Matt McGloin vs Chase Litton is a camp battle that will have a huge impact on the 2018 season. It won’t. If either of these guys sees the field in a regular season game, it likely means both Patrick Mahomes and Chad Henne are injured and that’s a sign that the season is likely a wash at that point anyway. However, several of the other battles on this list involve first and second string guys so this one gives you an easy battle to watch when the third and fourth string guys are in.
Matt McGloin is a five year NFL veteran with a decent amount of game experience for a third-string quarterback (13 games appeared in, 1,868 career passing yards, 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions). He’s not a guy that you want starting games for you, and there isn’t much (if any) upside there. But if you needed a guy to make a spot start or fill in for a quarter or two you could do worse than McGloin.
Frankly, while he hasn’t played near as much as KC’s new number two QB, Chad Henne, his completion percentage, yards per attempt, and QB rating are all very similar to Henne’s. However, Henne’s experience advantage and reputation as a good guy to have on the sideline and in meeting rooms got him the more substantial contract and essentially locked him in as the backup to Mahomes. That leaves the other veteran McGloin to fight with the rookie for the third spot.
That rookie is Chase Litton of Marshall. Litton wasn’t a highly-touted prospect coming out of college but his big body and NFL-caliber arm do make him an intriguing long term project. Litton was a three-year starter where he completed over 60% of his passes and averaged 24 passing touchdowns per season. He isn’t very mobile and has had some questionable decision making but if QB-guru Andy Reid thinks he can fine tune his mechanics and improve his decision making over time he could be an interesting long-term project. In fact, you could definitely draw some parallels with former Chiefs quarterback Tyler Bray.
I could be wrong, but I don’t know that I see the Chiefs keeping four quarterbacks (even if one of those was on the practice squad). With a young first time starter in Mahomes he’s going to need most of the reps so I just don’t see a need for four quarterbacks once the regular season rolls around. Therefore, if Litton wants to become Reid’s latest developmental project, he is going to need to show that he’s worthy in camp and the preseason.
Now let’s look at some battles that will effect who gets to play on Sundays this fall, starting with the starting outside linebacker spot opposite Justin Houston.