Most NFL transactions deserve the chance to play out over the course of a full season before judging them honestly. There are simply too few games on the sport's schedule and the variables are too great to be able to judge a signing, a release, a draft pick fairly enough without at least that much of a runway—at least in most instances.
But some decisions made in the offseason can be easily judged, the success is so instant or the fit is so poor that attaching a quick grade makes sense. Most of Brett Veach's activities, as general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs, are still up in the air from the 2024 offseason. Was Drue Tranquill's re-signing the right move? Was Kingsley Suamataia the right second-round choice? Was it right to leave Trey Smith out in the cold on an extension at this stage?
That said, a few moves have already made themselves known as "genius" moves. We're here to celebrate those after the first month of the season has passed. "Too soon," you say? Check out the moves below and then tell us what you think.
Signing Matt Araiza
One of the very first moves made by the Chiefs barely a week after they successfully took home their second Super Bowl victory in as many seasons was a controversial one at the time: the signing of punter Matt Araiza.
Araiza was a pariah by all accounts, a wonderfully gifted punter who found himself unemployed in the NFL for two full seasons after being falsely accused to rape. The early allegations caused the Buffalo Bills to release him shortly after drafting him in 2022, and he remained a free agent until early 2024 when the Chiefs gave him a chance to return to the sport.
The arrival of Araiza came with a bit of short-lived competition in Ryan Rehkow (who is now punting excellently for the Cincinnati Bengals). Still, it didn't take long for K.C. to realize they had something, well, special on special teams. Through four games, Araiza is fifth in the NFL in net yards per punt at 44.8. Even better is the fact that the Chiefs have only allowed 4 total returns for 24 yards with Araiza as punter.
Replacing Tommy Townsend wasn't supposed to be this easy but Araiza sitting on the shelf was a rare gift for the taking.
Importing Carson Wentz
The season is only four games old and Patrick Mahomes is very much upright and healthy these days, so how in the world can we say that signing Carson Wentz was a genius move? Just look around.
Several teams around the National Football League are hurting for quarterbacks, and the lack of quality options has already cratered the hopes of some fan bases even before September had faded from view. Ask the Miami Dolphins about their hopes following Tua Tagovailoa's concussion (Then again, see the Tennessee Titans for teams with a QB need who can't blame an injury.)
With Wentz as Blaine Gabbert's replacement, the Chiefs are in much better hands than most franchises would be if they were to lose their starting quarterback. On paper, Wentz even looks better than multiple starting options—unless you're bullish on the likes of Jacoby Brissett or Gardner Minshew. In fact, Wentz is the most talented backup Mahomes has ever had.
Let's hope Andy Reid doesn't have to use him, but if so, the Chiefs can still hold out hope that Wentz can get the job done.
Giving Chris Jones all the money
It took much, much longer than anyone expected, and the journey included some moments of extreme doubt, but in the end, the Chiefs were able to reach an agreement with their top defensive player this offseason to the tune of $95 million in guaranteed money.
Chris Jones is the heart and soul of this defense, and everything that Steve Spagnuolo wants the rest of his unit to be able to do is predicated somehow on Jones wrecking an opposing team's plans up front. Whether he's selecting the mismatch he wants to exploit or taking on multiple blockers to free up the blitz.
Despite getting paid, Jones has displayed the same competitive fire and hunger that's defined his game all along, which only goes to show that such fears that he would ease off a bit were unfounded in the first place. With the defense once again doing the heavy lifting for this team, and Jones adding 3 sacks and 12 pressures through 4 starts, Jones is likely even more important in '24 than ever before.
Bringing back Tershawn Wharton
Bringing back a role player on a one-year deal isn't the sort of franchise-defining move that typically earns much in the way of headlines, let alone actual dividends. However, Turk Wharton is having a year that no one could have anticipated.
It's possible the Chiefs held out hope for further growth from Wharton coming into his fifth year, but by the time a player completes his rookie deal, the verdict on their career has already been written: boom or bust. Considering that the average career is even less than the four-year rookie deal given to every draft pick, it would have made sense to think that Chiefs Kingdom had witnessed Wharton's best.
What might have been overlooked was how the mid-section of that four-year stretch for Wharton was thwarted by a torn ACL that robbed him of some very important developmental time and caused him to have to learn how to trust his footwork once more on the other side of such a serious injury.
Now free and clear of that injury by more than a season, Wharton is going to work at a different level in 2024, one that's providing much greater disruption inside. He has 8 pressures on the season, which already matches his career-best. For the Chiefs to see such modest gains there for a minimal deal is a nice boost for a team that could use more returns along the interior.