The Kansas City Chiefs met with at least a few players who piqued their interest at the East-West Shrine Bowl this last week.
The majority of players, coaches and staff members for the Kansas City Chiefs are busy these days preparing for the whole Super Bowl thing standing right in front of them, but there are a few folks who work at Arrowhead Stadium who are concerned primarily about the future. That is, they are focused on unearthing tomorrow’s rookie class in the hopes of sustaining the team’s current success for another year or five.
The East-West Shrine Bowl was played on Saturday and the Chiefs were on hand all week to talk to NFL hopefuls in an effort to find out more about character and talent, strengths and weaknesses. The fine folks at The Draft Network have a list of prospects and the teams that have shown interest, and the Chiefs were pegged with four meetings. We’ve decided to help you get ready for the future as well by taking a closer look at all four players to see what the Chiefs might like and how each might fit come draft day.
LeVante Bellamy, RB, Western Michigan
Other teams interested: Unknown
The Chiefs are likely to add some sort of draft talent to the mix at running back after sorting through a carousel at the position in 2019. LeSean McCoy will be one-and-done on the roster, and a few players are back with something to prove apiece, but that shouldn’t stop Brett Veach from making things interesting with a real competition for limited spots.
While Darrel Williams, Damien Williams, and Darwin Thompson focus on next year, LeVante Bellamy is the sort of Day 3 flyer that Veach could add to help elevate the depth chart while not occupying any major draft slot. The fact remains that other positions need to be addressed before running back, so the idea of drafting some new bell cow near the top of the team’s draft haul makes little sense.
With Bellamy, there’s little left to prove at the collegiate level after a season in which he put up 23 rushing touchdowns in the MAC for Western Michigan. He averaged 5.5 yards per carry on his way to 1,472 rushing yards and another 55 yards through the air.
That production is possible due to an eye-popping time in the 40-yard dash of 4.28 seconds. He’s also recorded a 41.5 inch vertical leap. If that makes your mouth water at the thought of adding him to the Chiefs, it should, but it’s also clear that the Chiefs need well-rounded backs who can do more than just sprint at a moment’s notice and it’s here that Bellamy has some real questions to answer.
Bellamy is likely to turn heads this pre-draft season by confirming what’s known about him. He’ll also want to address concerns about his hands, his blocking ability, and other aspects of the game likely to keep him from taking the field if he’s not ready. If, however, he can answer those questions well or address the weaknesses with coaching, he would absolutely give the Chiefs another option who is lethal in space.
Austin Edwards, Edge, Ferris State
Other teams interested: Carolina Panthers, Washington Redskins
The Kansas City Chiefs reached into the third round last draft for the “Aaron Donald of the FCS” and came away with a risk worth taking in defensive lineman Khalen Saunders. The Western Illinois product proved ready for the NFL and looked the part of a future impact player in limited stints, especially with Chris Jones on the shelf at various points.
Fast forward one year and the Chiefs might be inclined to grab another impressive defensive lineman from the football factory known as Ferris State. Austin Edwards, a 6’5, 280 lb. lineman, has been hogging up all the hardware after another stellar season in which he’s proven his ability to dominate any and all competition at this level, leaving questions about just how good he can be.
Not only was he a Division II first-team All-American but he was also given the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year Award. Even more impressive, he was the first defensive player to win the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Player of the Year Award since 2005, showing just how dominant he was in D2 to earn so much attention away from the offensive players who tend to dominate year-end awards.
In 2019, Edwards had 64 tackles, including 17.5 of them for a loss, to go with 10.5 sacks. He was the defensive cornerstone for a team that went 27-2 in the last two seasons.
The Chiefs are certainly loaded at defensive end in 2020, but things could fade quickly at that point as players continue to leave in free agency and it would likely be a full year for Edwards before the Chiefs would expect any return on their investment. If he can answer questions about level of competition, it might be worth another D2 investment to keep the line stacked with potential and future production.
John Hightower, WR, Boise State
Other teams interested: New York Giants, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints
John Hightower is a slender receiver/returner prospect from Boise State who stands an ultra slim 6’2, 172 lbs. who spent his first two years of college eligibiity at the JuCo level before transferring into the Mountain West, where he was an instant hit as an Second Team All-MWC player in each of his last two seasons.
The stats back up the eye test that Hightower is an incredibly fast target to enhance a downfield passing game. In 2019, he caught 51 passes for 943 yards and 8 touchdowns, good for a nice 18.5 yards/catch on average. That bested his mark of 16.3 yards/catch as a junior. He also put up 639 yards on 26 returns including a 98-yard touchdown on special teams.
Basically, Hightower is going to be a bit of a divisive prospect for some who look at his size and shake their heads at his ability to adjust to the pro level. A sub-180 lb. weight is just hard to find at the next level for good reason, but adding weight could take away from the very things that Hightower does most.
That’s not to say it cannot be done. Robby Anderson is an inch taller than Hightower and weighs 190. Will Fuller is 6’0, 180, as is Paul Richardson. But typically if a receiver needs to hover at 175 to do what he can do best, he’s also 3-4 inches shorter (see DeSean Jackson, T.Y. Hilton, Travis Benjamin).
Adding Hightower to the Chiefs would be yet another downfield boost and return option for Dave Toub, which might not hurt as Mecole Hardman transitions to the offense a bit more in year two, a la Tyreek Hill‘s development. But all eyes will be on his combine performance, where his frame will be over-analyzed alongside his shuttle, cone, and 40-yard dash times. If he gets a thumbs-up on both, the draft stock is going to soar.
Isaiah Wright, WR, Temple
Other teams interested: Chicago Bears, New York Giants
On the other side of the spectrum from John Hightower is the physical bulk seen on Isaiah Wright, wide receiver out of Temple. Wright stands at 6’2, 220 lbs. and is a Swiss army knife for Temple as a player asked to line up at running back, returner, and all over as a wideout. He is not quite the field-stretching dynamo in space that Hightower is, but he’s faster than you think and Wright’s also showed some very savvy route-running and nice hands over the last four years of development at Temple.
This last year, Wright had 47 catches for 442 yards and 5 touchdowns. Those stats certainly don’t jump off the page and they’re even down from previous seasons for the Owls, but it’s also not hard to see AAC defenses keying in on Wright in attempts to nullify his contributions.
Surprisingly enough, Wright has also served as a primary returner for the Owls in each of the last four seasons. While he didn’t turn any return into a score last year, he’s returned 2 kickoffs and 3 punts for touchdowns in his four-year career.
For a team that loses Demarcus Robinson in free agency and is likely to cut Sammy Watkins loose in order to save a tremendous amount of money, the Chiefs need to import a couple receivers. The special teams acumen and well-rounded skill set of Wright could be a good late draft play.