KC Chiefs have stashed trio of promising tight ends on practice squad
By Matt Conner
Matt Bushman
Meet the new guy.
Matt Bushman signed with the Chiefs earlier this week as the latest roster addition that signaled a potential change on the practice squad was on the way. Instead, the Chiefs merely added him and still kept the rest of the players on this list. Tight ends aplenty, for now.
The Chiefs signed Bushman after he spent this entire season with the Las Vegas Raiders, who dropped him at the end of December after carrying him on the team’s practice squad all season long. It’s a testament to Bushman’s talent and work ethic that he made the team as a rookie free agent after signing with them following the end of his career at Brigham Young University. He was also activated for two games this year, so it’s a bit surprising the Raiders released him when he’d become a fringe roster addition as an undrafted free agent in his first season at tight end,
As a prospect, Bushman has a few things working for and against him, which is true of any undrafted player. It can’t hurt that he went to BYU (Andy Reid’s alma mater) and he was the Cougars’ top receiver in both 2017 and 2018. He’s got a solid body of work and good hands with great receiving averages.
The downside here is that he’s already 26, which is true of many BYU kids who go on mission projects. Scouts also docked his blocking skills. Even more, he tore his Achilles in 2020 and missed his final season before the draft, which is the worst way for any prospect to enter the pros. However, his ability to climb the Raiders’ ranks (and maybe learn something from Darren Waller) makes him interesting and the Chiefs clearly think so, too.
Given that he’s added this late in the season, it makes us think he’s a good bet to earn a futures contract for the 2022 offseason.