Cam Erving was the weakest link along Chiefs offensive line in Week 1
By Matt Conner
Cam Erving allowed almost as many quarterback pressures as the rest of the offensive line in the Kansas City Chiefs season-opening win over the Chargers.
Left guard has been the revolving door, the carousel, the unsettled and uncertain position for the Kansas City Chiefs. Over the last few seasons, the Chiefs have found long-term stability at every other role along the offensive line, save for left guard, where every season seems to feature a new starting candidate (or two).
This year, Cameron Erving has been thrust into the role of starter but even that was a bit of a question mark headed into Week 1 for the Chiefs. Erving had been moved around like a super sub and looked like the perfect player to replace Zach Fulton as the primary backup at a number of positions. He’d just received a contract extension that was reportedly set to make him the highest paid o-line sub in the league. Then he was suddenly starting.
What made the ascension to starting left guard a bit more surprising was that Erving was there previously during the offseason and preseason but then Andrew Wylie was a late contestant to enter the picture. Even heading into the season opener on the road in L.A., Wylie was listed as the starting left guard, a surprise in itself. Suddenly the Chiefs had two options and neither one had any experience there, at least with the ones of this current roster.
When the season began however Erving was back at the helm. Unfortunately for the Chiefs, Pro Football Focus’s description of his performance was basically the same as an eye test for most fans in that it looked like he struggled against the Chargers pass rush. Check out PFF’s take:
"He gave up a hit and two hurries for a 56.8 overall grade. The rest of the line though only allowed four total pressures on the day for a solid overall performance."
Eric Fisher has been locked in as the left tackle since the Chiefs selected him No. 1 overall in 2013. Mitchell Schwartz has been a revelation at right tackle, even if he remains under the radar. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has rewarded the Chiefs belief in him as a developmental prospect, and Mitch Morse took over for Rodney Hudson without any real hiccup in terms of the transition.
Yet left guard has been a problem for some time. Bryan Witzmann played the role of starter last season, just one year after Parker Ehinger claimed it as a fourth-round rookie. If at one point, Ehinger was the real deal, those days ended the moment he tore his ACL and never returned to form. Even before Ehinger, it was an odd mish-mash of players that include a trade for Ben Grubbs that went south after a neck injury, Jeff Linkenbach, Mike McGlynn, Jeff Allen and Mike McGlynn have also started in the last six years.
With Erving’s new extension, is this something he can grow into? Can the line really solidify? Or will the Chiefs add another new name to the mix starting next year? If Erving can make the leap, this line could really take the next step together.