Joe Thuney signing: Overlooked aspects of K.C. Chiefs big acquisition

Versatility is key

Some fans will point to Joe Thuney’s versatility and believe that he could be bound for another position other than guard. I am not one of those persons. When a man has made an All-Pro team at a single position and has built nearly 100 games at the NFL level of muscle memory at that very spot, it makes the most sense to keep him right there and allow him to excel in ways the Chiefs haven’t seen in that spot in a long, long time. (We’ll get to this angle in a second.)

However, Thuney is very versatile as a player and that’s going to come in handy for the Chiefs at some point in the life of this contract. It’s just the nature of the game.

When entering the NFL after a solid career at N.C. State, Thuney was known as a well-rounded prospect who had played every position along the offensive line. Five years later, he was primarily a left guard for the Patriots, obviously, but it’s also true that he’s helped the Pats in a pinch in various ways over the years. When the team has lost their starting tackles over time, such as Marcus Cannon or Isaiah Wynn, it was Thuney who volunteered to be a tackle instead (and the Pats had him practice there). When David Andrews went down at center, Thuney even played two games at the position just last year.

For the Chiefs who just watched their offensive line get decimated by injuries in a frustrating 2020 season that still brought them to the edge of Super Bowl glory, Thuney is going to be the kind of versatile salve that allays fears of that happening again.