7 Kansas City Chiefs in danger of losing their jobs after 2019 NFL Draft
Darrel Williams – Running Back
The Chiefs had an unfortunately tumultuous season at the running back position. After an incredible rookie year, where he won the rushing title, Kareem Hunt ran into trouble and the team was forced to part ways with him. Further, backup running back Spencer Ware struggled to come back from a major injury and was never really a factor even after the departure of Hunt.
This resulted in a relatively unknown acquisition in Damien Williams being thrust into the starting role. Williams performed admirably and, at times, incredibly. He ended the year very strongly, with 250 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns in the Chiefs’ two playoff games.
In my eyes, Damien Williams is the undisputed starting running back in the Chiefs’ offense. He has good rushing ability, but more importantly his receiving ability seems to be top notch. It’s doubtful that, even with the addition of Carlos Hyde, anyone will challenge him for the starting role .
That brings me to Darrel Williams. Darrel has shown flashes here and there of the ability to be the thunder to another player’s lightning. But, he hasn’t demonstrated, or had the opportunity to demonstrate, a versatility that would allow him to consistently get playing time. At this point, even though he seems to have some promise, he’s likely the third running back option behind Damien Williams and the recently signed Carlos Hyde.
Somewhat surprisingly, there has been sentiment almost all offseason that the Chiefs could be targeting a running back in the NFL Draft. Whether it’s Todd McShay’s mock draft where he has the Chiefs expending a high pick on Josh Jacobs, or simply the several meetings the organization has had with other later round prospects, it’s clear the team is looking to improve this position.
Whether the player is drafted or signed as an undrafted free agent, they will push Darrel William for his spot. It’s unlikely the team would expend draft capital for a player they don’t intend to keep on the roster for at least a year. Given the team doesn’t usually carry more than three running backs on the active roster, Darrel’s role seems to be at risk.
Conclusion:
As a general rule of thumb, in professional football a team will usually give a player they took in the NFL Draft more opportunities to succeed than one they didn’t. Especially, if that player is a high pick. The reason for this is, generally speaking, the organization has spent a significant amount of time vetting these players and have deemed them to be unquestionably worthy of investment.
Next. Getting into Veach's shoes for each round of the draft. dark
Considering this, depending on how the draft falls, each of the players I covered will presumably need to have an effective offseason and preseason to keep their spots for 2019. While most of them were contributors to the team the last year or two, this doesn’t really give them an advantage. The draftees coming in will be hungry and ready to compete for time.