Role players come up big for KC Chiefs in AFC Championship

Every team who makes it as far as a conference championship game in the National Football League has a deep roster. There’s simply no way around it. The rigors of a full season demand that a team remain stacked at most positions. Injuries are going to happen. There’s just no way around it.

For the Kansas City Chiefs, role players played a major part in the team’s success this entire season and that was especially true in the AFC Championship win over the Buffalo Bills. On both sides of the ball, the Chiefs were forced to lean on backup players at key moments and were rewarded for doing so.

When Darrel Williams continued to punish opposing defenses for a second straight postseason game, it was a reminder of how important undrafted free agent signings can be. When Chris Lammons showcased tremendous instincts as a special teams gunner early in the first quarter, it revealed how important small in-season signings can become.

Former sixth-round pick Rashad Fenton iced the game with a late interception that put the game out of reach for the Bills. Seventh-round pick Nick Allegretti has been a mainstay at left guard ever since the Chiefs lost Kelechi Osemele for the season. Speaking of the line, the entire offensive front has been a patchwork effort, a line currently manned by journeyman vets and young players stepping up.

After the AFC Championship, Brett Veach spoke to reporters about the challenges of building such a roster.

"“We say it every year going into the draft and the offseason. These are long seasons. Week in and week out, it’s tough to win games. Long season is a battle of attrition. It’s not a question of if but when the next guy’s gotta step up. So we take a lot of pride in building the roster.“Certainly we have superstars at the top but we know as the season goes on—as you mention guys like Mike Remmers and Darrel Williams—those guys keep seasons going. Those guys are gonna be called upon. You never know when but these guys train and prepare and work their tails off.”"

Veach said that the team maintains an “aggressive” strategy all year long in order to build the roster that is ultimately capable of lasting for a full regular season and postseason.

"“Certainly we know how important depth is in this league, and that’s why I think our staff does such a great job of being aggressive at any point—not just in free agency or in the first round of the draft but just staying active throughout the course of the calendar year.”"

Late in the game, the Chiefs watched two more key players go down to injury when L’Jarius Sneed was taken to the locker room for a potential concussion and Eric Fisher was lost for the rest of the playoffs due to an Achilles injury. With just one game left on the schedule, the Chiefs will be forced to dig deep and ask more role players to step up and do what they’ve been doing all season long.