What should the Kansas City Chiefs expect from Khalen Saunders in year two?

What should we expect from Khalen Saunders in year two?

For a player that was likely supposed to have a redshirt season in 2019, Khalen Saunders took advantage of the snaps he received. Showing development as the season went along brings a lot of optimism about what he could do moving forward.

Pennel and Nnadi will lock down the nose tackle position. If Jones does play in 2020, Saunders will likely be a rotational player who can help against the run behind him. It would allow the youngster more time to work on his technique while getting quality reps. As of right now, the future of Jones for the upcoming season is unclear. If he doesn’t play, Saunders might be asked to fill a more extensive role again.

Expecting Saunders to be as disruptive as Jones would be foolish. They’re style of play and how they win are vastly different. However, if Saunders is tasked with being Jones’ successor, the flashes from 2019 should excite fans about what he could become. Another year developing under defensive line coach Brendan Daly will be huge.

Overall, consistency and developing technique will be what we need to keep an eye on in 2020. As of right now, Saunders looks to be a good run defender that can play early downs when needed. His pass rush has a lot left to be desired, but given Spagnuolo’s structure of bringing defensive ends to play the interior on obvious passing downs, there’s still time for him to work on that part of his game.