Even after a rougher performance in Week 3, Kahlil Benson is going to be the Kansas City Chiefs' man at left tackle for now. That much is clear after hearing Andy Reid talk about Josh Simmons' status after the team's recent win over the Miami Dolphins. Benson, for his part, sounds very committed to learning what he must from such a performance.
The Chiefs beat the Dolphins by 14 in Miami to go to 3-0 on the season, so the mood is positive. But that doesn't mean that there aren't concerns to address, and Benson's play was one of them after watching Patrick Mahomes take a few big hits in the pocket on Sunday.
Benson spoke with The Athletic after the Chiefs' road win about his performance.
“There’s a lot of things I can clean up, but I’m gonna make sure I clean it up in the film room. As a rookie, I’m going to keep listening to my vets, listening to my coaches, and make sure I clean up the right things that I need to clean up so we can go back and play better next week," said Benson.
Kahlil Benson is learning on the job
Benson brings up a couple of notable angles in his remarks—the first of which is the fact that he is a rookie. In fact, he was a rookie free agent who only signed with the Chiefs after a successful tryout in rookie minicamp. That he's even on the active roster at all is a major achievement, let alone serving as the starting left tackle for the first three weeks of his professional career.
Despite the early success on both an individual and organizational level, opposing teams are starting to learn how to get the best of Benson. The Chiefs seemed to ease up on the tackle help in Miami, and the warts in Benson's game were exposed on a greater level in the process. The Chiefs technically surrendered zero sacks, but only five quarterbacks were knocked down more than Patrick Mahomes in Week 3. Dolphins edge rushers Joshua Uche and Chop Robinson deserve some credit here, but the truth is that Benson's learning curve is considerable.
The Chiefs have reasons to believe in Benson’s development
That's where the second angle—listening to his vets and coaches—comes in, and it's the good news. Benson has taken very well to coaching so far. Throughout training camp, he was moved around from the right side to the left to inside at right guard. All along the way, coaches raved about his strength, skill set, and work ethic—so much so that the team released Esa Pole and traded away Wanya Morris to the Atlanta Falcons, which created more space for Benson on the depth chart.
And the ceiling might reach quite a bit higher. Remember that Benson was always a right tackle, not only in Chiefs camp but going back to his days at Indiana. In fact, Benson never once lined up as a starting left tackle in three seasons with the Hoosiers or one year with the Colorado Buffaloes. It raised eyebrows when Benson was introduced as Simmons' replacement, since a switch of that magnitude isn't a casual move.
Josh Simmons’ absence keeps Benson in the spotlight
Back to Simmons for a second: The Chiefs would undoubtedly be much better off with him as their left tackle. He was drafted in the first round (2025) for a reason, and when he's on the field, he's a potential top-10 tackle in the NFL. But he's missed every practice, preseason exhibition, and regular-season game since August 18 with a back injury, and Reid just told reporters that he would let them know when he had an update on Simmons' return date.
But Simmons isn't available now, and there's no timeline for when he will be. Diego Pounds, a preseason trade acquisition from the Baltimore Ravens, is an option, but he joined the team less than a month ago, and the Chiefs seem committed to Benson on the left side for now. Experience is the best teacher, as they say, and Benson is leaning into the work.
The Chiefs roll into Las Vegas on Sunday to face the 3-0 Raiders and then enter an early bye week, which will bring all of this back into view before Week 6. With that much time off, Chiefs Kingdom will want to know if Simmons will be back in the lineup after missing the first month. Until then, Benson is clearly committed to growing his game and to being the man for as long as the Chiefs need him to be.
Add us as a preferred source on Google