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

A cornerstone at left guard—finally

It’s possible that Joe Thuney ends up playing a different position than left guard, however, that’s not the belief here. For our purposes, we’re assuming Thuney has been brought into town to be a fixture at left guard, a position at which the Chiefs haven’t exactly placed many resources in the past. (Ahem, that’s putting it lightly.)

For a better idea of the team’s history at the position, here’s a look at how things have shaped up on the roster since head coach Andy Reid arrived.

• 2013: Jeff Allen, Rok Watkins
• 2014: Mike McGlynn, Jeff Linkenbach
• 2015: Ben Grubbs, Allen
• 2016: Parker Ehinger, Zach Fulton
• 2017: Bryan Witzmann
• 2018: Cam Erving, Andrew Wylie
• 2019: Wylie, Martinas Rankin
• 2020: Kelechi Osemele, Nick Allegretti

Once you read through that list, you realize just how refreshing it might be to have the same guy—a high-functioning player—last at the role for the next five years. Based on that list, the previous five years have seen 9 players taking multiple starts in that spot. Yikes!

Now, the counter-argument here is to say, “Hey, the Chiefs have made and won a Super Bowl without ever investing anything other than bare minimums at guard. Why start now?” That’s very true and it’s a good point. If the team has found a way to balance the roster’s finances by going cheap at the position, then they should exploit that trait. But here, they’ve now decided to invest $80 million into the role. Clearly something has changed. Let’s take a look at what it might be.