Now that the NFL Combine has finished, we can begin looking at which workout warriors may make sense for Kansas City to take a closer look at.
Your Kansas City Chiefs were crowned the champions of Super Bowl LVII less than one month ago, but the front office and coaching staff have long since moved on to working on roster construction for the 2023 season. One such endeavor took them last weekend to Indianapolis and the annual NFL Combine, where draft-eligible players were put through the gambit of athletic and mental testing, interviews, and measurements.
At the conclusion, no doubt, the Chiefs’ brass began reconfiguring their draft boards based on what they saw, heard, and otherwise learned at what’s often dubbed the “Underwear Olympics”.
While few surprises occurred during this annual dog-and-pony show, there were a few notable performances that stood out, which should be interesting for Kansas City to consider in the lead-up to the draft.
While ultimately it will fall on the coaching staff and front office to watch the film, conduct the pre-draft visits, et cetera to determine whether or not these players could help the Chiefs to back-to-back championships, their Combine outputs at least merit that closer look.
1. Mazi Smith, Defensive Tackle, Michigan
One of the more underrated and under-discussed free agents for the defending Super Bowl champions is defensive tackle Khalen Saunders. The former Western Illinois star was dubbed an athletic freak after the 2019 NFL Combine, and Kansas City surprised many by using a third-round selection on the small school standout. Saunders has had an up-and-down tenure with the Chiefs, winning two Super Bowl rings (of course), but also spending large majorities of the 2020 and 2021 seasons on the bench before coming on as a strong contributor in the 2022 season. Now set to hit free agency, it would be a surprise if general manager Brett Veach found it in the budget to keep Saunders knowing they have a bevy of draft picks and a proven track record of drafting and developing tackles.
Enter Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith. The former Wolverine has drawn comparisons to former Kansas City Chiefs first-round pick Dontari Poe: athletically gifted, high motor, a little inconsistent, and raw. Chiefs defensive line coach Joe Cullen should have inspired much confidence throughout the Kingdom in his ability to develop and push players with the potential to perform at a high level after the transformation of Kansas City’s frontline in just one season under his tutelage. While Smith didn’t go through the full cycle of drills, he did post 34 reps on the bench press (the most by any defensive tackle this year) and will do all of the testing at Michigan’s Pro Day in late March.
But we already know what that’s going to tell us: in addition to outstanding strength, he’s also lightning fast (clocked at 4.95 in the 40-yard dash in 2022 at 310 pounds), times that would’ve been the fastest at the combine for defensive tackles in the 3-cone drill and 60-yard shuttle, and massive explosion numbers in the broad and vertical jumps. How strong is Smith? Last season he did 22 reps on the bench press in 2022 at 325 pounds. That’s a full 100 pounds heavier than the Combine standard. Only seven prospects did more than that at 225 in Indianapolis last weekend.
The Chiefs will be looking for the most affordable option as part of a new defensive line room for the 2023 season. They would be well served to give the former 1st Team All Big Ten Mazi Smith a closer look as the draft approaches, potentially considering using their second-round pick on the athletic standout.