3 Chiefs fighting for their job in training camp

Andrew Wylie

Wylie was thrust into an unfortunate position during Super Bowl LV as he was shifted from right guard to right tackle to account for Eric Fisher’s Achilles injury suffered in the AFC Championship game.

The dreadful results of that reshuffle are now infamous, with Mahomes left running for his life in the face of a ferocious Buccaneers pass rush that harassed him consistently en route to a dominant 31-9 win that ended the Chiefs’ hopes of repeating as champions.

And, like several members of the Chiefs’ offensive line from last year, Wylie could find himself moving on to pastures new.

The Chiefs completely remodeled their O-Line this offseason and Wylie’s best hope of remaining with the team is as a backup, but even that is no guarantee.

Joe Thuney will start at left guard following his arrival as a free agent and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif is back after opting out of the 2020 season. He will be the favorite to get the nod at right guard. Wylie’s hopes were boosted somewhat by the lower leg injury suffered by Kyle Long following his decision to come out of retirement and sign with Kansas City, yet the Chiefs have other reserve options.

Austin Blythe has the versatility to play at guard should he lose the starting center competition to rookie Creed Humphrey, while sixth-round pick Trey Smith presents a significantly cheaper alternative to Wylie.

Per Spotrac, Wylie’s cap hit for 2021 is $2.13 million compared to $692,677 for Smith, and the Chiefs can move on from Wylie without incurring a dead cap charge.

Wylie was unlucky in being forced to play in an unfamiliar role in the biggest game of his career, and now many of the signs point to him looking for work before the season starts.