KC Chiefs will visit with South Florida offensive lineman before 2024 NFL Draft
By Matt Conner
As the 2024 NFL Draft creeps closer, some prospects are making the rounds in order to ensure their cases have been fully made for the teams likely to be most interested in drafting them. One offensive lineman putting in the miles with less than two weeks to go is Donovan Jennings.
Jennings, an offensive lineman from the University of South Florida, has hopes of playing tackle at the next level just as he has for the Bulls for the last few years. The Kansas City Chiefs had enough interest in his potential to bring him in for a visit on Tuesday.
According to NFL reporter Aaron Wilson, the Chiefs are just one of several teams bringing him in, including the New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings, and Green Bay Packers.
Jennings stands 6'5, 333 lbs., so the frame is pro-ready, but scouts are projecting a potential shift to guard, where he showed he could play in this year's East-West Shrine game. He started 9 games this past season at left tackle (an injury knocked him out of three games) for the Bulls and played in a program-tying record 54 games overall.
There are, however, several things that will knock Jennings down draft boards. First, he's older as a sixth-year senior, and that span of time is explained by seasons ruined by injuries, including a season-ending ankle injury after only 4 games in 2022.
For the Chiefs, the idea of bringing on a prospect like Jennings could yield dividends as a late-round flyer. Depending on how versatile they believe he can be, he could either contend for a swing tackle role or compete inside with Mike Caliendo and others for Nick Allegretti's old spot as a super-sub along the offensive interior.