Kansas City Chiefs release first unofficial depth chart of the season

The Kansas City Chiefs have released the first unofficial depth chart of the season, which includes some surprises for fans.

With much anticipation, the Kansas City Chiefs have released the first unofficial depth chart of the 2019 season.

This does not reflect what the official depth chart will be to start the season in September, however, it gives fans a good idea of how training camp is shaking up. One of the points of interest lies within the running back depth.

Check out the following via Chiefs reporter Matt Derrick:

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At running back, Damien Williams is listed over Carlos Hyde, which was to be expected. Hyde has had more reps due to Williams dealing with an injury throughout camp, but the team has (at least for now), made it clear who the starter is. Behind Hyde, Darrel Williams has trumped over rookie Darwin Thompson, and CB-turned-RB Tremon Smith is at the bottom of the pack.

On the offensive line, Cam Erving is listed as the second-stringer behind tackle Eric Fisher after spending last season as the team’s rotational guard. Andrew Wylie has seemingly been impressive at the left guard position and will likely be the starter as the official depth chart releases in around a month.

The wide receiver corps is a bit interesting behind Mecole Hardman and Demarcus Robinson in a battle for the final two receiver spots. Wide receivers Cody Thompson and Jamal Custis have received their fair share of praise throughout camp, and the former received a hefty contract from the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent. They are a bit behind the crowd according to the depth chart. It seems to be Dieter, Pringle, Marcus Kemp and Rashard Davis battling for the final two spots behind Hardman and Robinson. Dieter is a fan favorite to make the team and  also sports a chemistry with Mahomes that is almost unbeatable. It will take a lot more than chemistry to make the roster though.

On defense, as expected, left defensive end Alex Okafor is across from right defensive end Frank Clark. In between is defensive tackles Chris Jones and Derrick Nnadi, with Xavier Williams and Justin Hamilton following behind on the depth chart. Tanoh Kpassagnon is listed as the No. 2 LDE behind Clark, and Breeland Speaks is the No. 2 RDE behind Okafor. Emmanuel Ogbah is listed as the third-stringer, which is a bit surprising.

The starting linebackers are of no surprise, with the Sam linebacker being Damien Wilson, the middle linebacker being Reggie Ragland, and Anthony Hitchens completes it as the Will linebacker. Darron Lee is behind Hitchens, followed by Dorian O’Daniel, a player who picked up momentum toward the end of the 2018 season.

To the dismay of some fans, safety Daniel Sorensen is listed above Juan Thornhill at free safety. Again, this is not final in any way and only reflects the snaps that has been taken during training camp. Thornhill could very likely end up being the starter toward the end of August and beginning of September.

It is also interesting to note that cornerback D’Montre Wade has made his way up the roster and is doing so in an impressive fashion. While Wade surely is not the best at the position, he is definitely good for depth and he’s been performing nicely so far at training camp. It is subject to change, and the depth at cornerback may seem rather alarming, but the young cornerbacks are hungry and ready to develop.

According to Derrick, Deon Yelder at No. 2 tight end and Blake Bell as the No. 3 tight end is not necessarily accurate, citing coaches and snap counts. It is still a close battle, however, one that will decide who the backup tight end to star Travis Kelce will be.

The Chiefs will likely release two more unofficial depth charts before releasing the first official depth chart of the season. Before that happens, though, roster cutdowns will ensue and most of the players seen on the roster will not be there as the team looks to trim down to 53 players. One thing is for sure though: the defense has an entirely different look.

Also, the club’s 2017 and 2018 second-round picks (Speaks, Kpassagnon) seem to be improving. They will look to increase their roles on defense for the 2019 season and hopefully deliver some sort of impact.