After moving up in the second round via a trade with the San Francisco 49ers, the Kansas City Chiefs selected offensive tackle Kingsley Suamataia out of BYU with the 63rd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Suamataia is joining an offensive line that is coming off of a Super Bowl Championship and looking to make it three in a row. Currently, the Chiefs have a largely-established offensive line heading into 2024, but the BYU rookie has a chance to make an immediate impact.
Heading into 2024, the offensive line appears to be in a good place, especially along the interior with All-Pro left guard Joe Thuney, All-Pro center Creed Humphrey and a bright young mauler in Trey Smith.
Let's take a closer look at the offensive line and the depth chart at tackle after the Kingsley Suamataia draft selection.
The Chiefs' tackle positions are filled, at present, by 2023 All-Rookie performer Wanya Morris, who stepped into the starting role down the stretch following a Donovan Smith neck injury at the end of the season, and Jawaan Taylor, who had an up-and-down season. He led the NFL in penalties with 20, which routinely stalled offensive drives, but he's locked in on a four-year deal and should improve after gaining experience.
Behind those tackles, the Chiefs also have Lucas Niang coming into a contract year. The former third-round pick has only played 67 snaps on offense in the last two seasons and was beaten out by Prince Tega Wanogho and Morris a year ago on the depth chart.
Suamataia has a high ceiling to become an effective member of the Chiefs' starting five, but scouts point out technique issues with his hands and other concerns make him a raw prospect coming in compared to more pro-ready tackles. These are reasons the Chiefs can't throw him into the fire and expect good results from day one—at least at this stage.
The good news is the Chiefs are not in dire need of a day-one starter. They have time to coach Suamataia, who is only 21 years old, to see if he can be the player they believe he can be when they drafted him at No. 63 overall. The preseason will be a good indicator of the type of player Suamataia will be in the league and the Chiefs can allow competition to sort out the starter and swing tackle roles. Remember, Suamataia played a full season at right tackle as well for the Cougars in '22.
At the end of the day, the Kansas City Chiefs drafted a OT who has the potential to play a big role for this team in the seasons to come. A year working with positional coach Andy Heck in the Chiefs system should have Kingsley Suamataia ready to live up to his second-round investment.