Five key questions to answer following Chiefs win over Rams

Will Lucas Niang ever start?

The Chiefs might or might not be eyeing a starting role at right tackle for Lucas Niang sometime in the near future. In his first game back on the active roster, however, Niang is going to have to wait to find out.

Niang has been out since the beginning of last January with a patellar injury that robbed him of his entire offseason and the first 10 games of this season. The Chiefs activated him to the roster, however, after watching him practice since early November, and it makes sense to wonder whether or not he’ll take over for Andrew Wylie at right tackle at some point if he looks ready for the role.

Remember, the Chiefs selected Niang in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft to give them a long-term starting option outside. For his first season, he opted out due to COVID, which pushed back his rookie contract for another year. Injuries have kept him from settling into a starting role, but he’s still under team control for some time.

Just because Niang was active for Sunday’s game against the Rams didn’t necessarily mean he was going to step back into the starting lineup, however. Wylie held down the right bookend role and actually played quite well at times while Niang just sat. It’s impossible to tell what the level of competition is like there or whether the Chiefs will keep Wylie outside for the familiarity he brings to the table. For now, we’re all having to wait and see.