Austin Reiter
Nearly two years ago, the Cleveland Browns released offensive lineman Austin Reiter when making final roster moves before the 2018 season. The Chiefs decided to put in a claim hoping to bolster their offensive interior. What they likely didn’t realize was that Reiter would become an anchor in the middle for a Super Bowl winning offense.
Since arriving in Kansas City, Reiter has been an impressive low-cost piece for the Chiefs at center for a team that needed to find that sort of value financially. In his first season with the Chiefs, Reiter took over the center role when Mitch Morse was lost (again) to injury for four starts. That was enough of a tryout to earn Brett Veach’s trust.
Late in that 2018 season, Reiter was signed to a two-year extension worth up to $5.5 million that runs through 2020. After making four starts the year before, Reiter settled into Morse’s old spot and made all 16 starts for the Chiefs in 2019. The end result was a Super Bowl and some stability on the cheap at the heart of the offensive front.
So how does Reiter benefit from COVID-19’s presence? The Chiefs can ill afford to experiment with further changes along a line that’s already seen Laurent Duvernay-Tardif leave and new imports like Kelechi Osemele and Mike Remmers vie for jobs. Even if the position is ripe for an upgrade, the Chiefs lack the on-ramp needed to even see if they have better options on the roster.
If the Chiefs had padded practices and four preseason games in which they could test Nick Allegretti and Darryl Williams at the same position, Reiter could potentially be a player on the bubble. At the very least, center would be among the more interesting positions to watch. As it is, any upgrade over Reiter will only happen once his contract is up.