KC Chiefs 7-round mock draft: Fixing Kansas City’s defense

2.62: Phidarian Mathis, IDL, Alabama

Phidarian Mathis has been at the mercy of a deep Alabama defensive line. This season the fifth-year senior got his chance and made the most of the opportunity. He made an impact that earned the respect of Nick Saban and has become a top interior defensive line prospect in this draft.

Measurables

Height: 6’3″

Weight: 313 lbs.

Hand Size: 10 3/8 inches

Arm Length: 34 5/8 inches

Wingspan: 83 4/8 inches

Strengths

Phidarian Mathis made a name for himself this year due to a couple of different things. First, he was an Alabama product who was a big part of their defensive line. That alone makes his name one to watch. Not to mention, he played for one of the biggest football schools in the world. Secondly, he didn’t take his chance for granted. Mathis made the most out of any chance he received.

Mathis is a very athletic 3-tech defensive tackle who shows signs of versatility. What do I mean when I say ‘versatility’? I mean that he is able to line up as a 4-3 defensive tackle, 4-3 defensive end (on certain play calls), 3-4 defensive end, and 3-4 nose tackle. Mathis also has athleticism that allows him to move around on the line in order to create pressure. However, it’s more than that. He actually plays a game revolving around the combination of speed and strength, and it works.

Now, it’s hard to really get a gauge on how productive Mathis could be at the next level for a couple of reasons. But I like the fact that I have that concern and here’s why. When looking at his film, primarily against Georgia in the National Championship Game, he was constantly being double-teamed and in some instances, triple-teamed. However, he was still doing everything he could to try and make a play for his team. Not to mention what an honor it is that the Georgia offense schemed to make sure that he couldn’t be involved in some of the plays. That’s a huge testament to Mathis as a player.

Below are some clips I found on Twitter that can help you see how he plays.

Weaknesses

Mathis doesn’t show many flaws in his game however, there is are a couple of things that I noticed that bugs me.

First, let’s talk about his hand usage and ability to disengage from blocks. When it comes to Mathis, there is a lot of special traits there but his ability to disengage from blocks consistently is not one of them. If he is unable to get the first step on his blocker, he is generally forced to try and use his speed to beat them instead of countering them with a swim move.

That brings me to the second thing that has been bothering me with Mathis: playing time. Before this season, he never really got much of it. Yes, I know he was at Alabama, a school filled with incredible talent. However, it doesn’t change the fact that if what we saw on film was true, why didn’t he start before this point?

That’s what really bugs me about Mathis and taking the risk on him. I love what I see on film from an analysis standpoint. He has every trait I look for when doing my scouting, but there must be something we don’t know. Maybe he could be a one-year wonder? Or maybe I’m reading into this too much and he just needed to develop in college and learn.

If so, that makes complete sense. He was inconsistent with his ability to use counter moves to get to the quarterback. So maybe that has been his problem and why he’s not started for the last couple of seasons. Which, if that’s his only real concern, I can live with that.

At the end of the day, his ceiling is so much higher than his floor and with some coaching, the traits are there. He could be a great piece to the Chiefs’ defense.

How He fits With the Kansas City Chiefs

This is the question that I feel I’ve already answered but I’ll clear it up.

Phidarian Mathis is definitely an up-and-coming pass rusher which, quite frankly, the Chiefs desperately need. When you look back on the Chiefs-Bengals game this past Sunday, you’d notice that the Chiefs were not able to get Joe Burrow behind the line of scrimmage. Why is that? It’s because we don’t have many players who can get to the quarterback.

Frank Clark isn’t exactly a dominating pass rusher in the league and Chris Jones can’t do it all by himself. They need help to take pressure off of them. Hence, the first two picks in this draft.

If the Kansas City Chiefs are able to snag Enagbare with their first pick in the draft, then follow that up with Phidarian Mathis here, the Chiefs’ defensive front is already in a much better spot than they were at the start of last season.