NFL free agency is nearly four weeks in. With the 2019 NFL draft quickly approaching, who could the Chiefs still target in Free Agency?
Free agency officially began on March 13th, so by now most of the premier players have been scooped up by NFL teams.
The Chiefs, while having a large amount of cap space, have been unexpectedly quiet in free agency. Yes, they signed safety Tyrann Matheiu and defensive end Alex Okafor, among others, but Over the Cap puts them at a shade over $23 million in cap space left to spend. This is expected to balloon to roughly $32 million after June 1st, due to the release of Eric Berry.
The Chiefs have a lot of cap space. It seems odd that the team hasn’t done more with that money. They are preparing for future extensions with players like Chris Jones, Tyreek Hill, and Patrick Mahomes but it’s also true that some deals just haven’t worked out (Earl Thomas). But, there are still holes on the team that need to be filled and they can do that in free agency.
With the NFL draft quickly approaching, what are some of those holes? More importantly, who are the players left in free agency that could give Brett Veach ultimate flexibility going into the draft? Here are some last minute pre-draft moves that could aid the Chiefs in their draft approach to take the best player available.
1. NDAMUKONG SUH
It seems crazy to think, but Ndamukong Suh has been in the NFL for almost a decade. He is a player who came into the league with serious momentum, nearly winning the Heisman Trophy his senior year at Nebraska as a defensive tackle. His first several years in the league, he was a dominant force.
But, as of late, he hasn’t been quite as dominant. After signing a mega-deal with the Miami Dolphins in 2015, Suh hasn’t been the same. He had some less notable years with Miami, who eventually cut him, and most recently played next to Aaron Donald on the Super Bowl runner-up Los Angeles Rams. Last year he had 59 tackles and 4.5 sacks for L.A.
While Suh’s impact has declined some, he is still a high quality defensive player. According to Pro Football Focus in 2018, he ranked highly in all categories for a defensive lineman. He had a grade of 82.6 overall, good for 20th in the league. Specifically, he had a grade of 86.7 against the run, good for 13th, and 68.0 against the pass, good for 28th.
You might argue that the Chiefs don’t need any more defensive linemen, but it’s likely they will target at least one in this year’s draft. Instead, imagine having Suh lined up next to Chris Jones. Or, Jones, Suh, and Derrick Nnadi on the field all at the same time. These are some tempting possibilities, and he would undoubtedly add a quality piece to an improving unit.
Reportedly, Suh wants to stay out West, yet no team has called his number. Given the lack of reported market interest to date, he might be an interesting add for the Chiefs. According to Spotrac, his market value is $15.4 million. There might be a scenario where Veach can sign Suh to a more favorable one-year deal, spending that money now and keeping that money free for 2020 and beyond. That would be the best of both worlds.