KC Chiefs: Three moves to make following the 2022 NFL Draft

Extend Orlando Brown Jr.

If the Chiefs were going to throw a curveball at the commonly held notion that Orlando Brown Jr. will be the left tackle for years to come, they should have done so before or during the draft. It was then that they could have traded Brown for draft assets and/or could have factored that into the players taken. Instead, the Chiefs only added Kentucky lineman Darian Kinnard in the fifth round, who is a road grader on the right side but not at all ready for starting blindside reps.

At this point, it’s time to get a long-term extension done with Brown since the Chiefs are all-in. If there were questions, then it would have made sense to add some long-term security with the likes of Bernhard Raimann or Luke Goedeke or a trade-up for Trevor Penning.

Brown is playing this season on the franchise tag, which he has yet to sign, but the team and player have both said the right things about making this work for the long haul. Of course, Tyrann Mathieu said the same thing (as did the Chiefs in that instance) and we know how that worked out, but the Chiefs have nothing if they let Brown leave, so it only makes sense to lock him up now to avoid drama, reward their Pro Bowl tackle with some security, and avoid the rising costs of the market.