The Kansas City Chiefs fell short of reaching a third straight Super Bowl in 2021. Who could the team be looking at when free agency begins in mid-March?
From a 3-4 start to eight straight wins. From a sixth consecutive AFC West title to scoring 42 points on consecutive Sundays in playoff wins over the Steelers and Bills.
The Kansas City Chiefs would host the AFC Championship Game for the fourth straight year. Andy Reid’s team owned a 21-3 lead at intermission. But for the second time in 2021, the club failed to put away the Cincinnati Bengals. And the club was denied a third consecutive trip to the Super Bowl.
Now it’s retooling time and this team has some needs despite reaching the playoffs seven straight years. So which five veterans should Reid and general manager Brett Veach be keeping their eyes on? There’s a defensive-heavy emphasis here and with good reason.
Chiefs: 5 free agent targets for 2022
5. DE Derek Barnett (Philadelphia Eagles)
The AFC West champions allowed a disappointing 42 offensive touchdowns in 17 regular-season outings. And who knows where this group would have finished if it weren’t for the play of veteran defensive lineman Chris Jones. Far more effective on the inside than the outside, he led the team with 9.5 sacks.
The Chiefs have their share of veteran defensive linemen that could test free agency this year. On the outside, there’s Melvin Ingram and Alex Oakafor and on the interior, Jarran Reed and Derrick Nnadi. And what does the future hold for Frank Clark, who has quite the cap number for 2022?
In 2017, the Philadelphia Eagles made University of Tennessee defensive end Derek Barnett a first-round pick. In five seasons with the Birds, he’s totaled 23.0 sacks in 69 contests (including playoffs). He also recovered that Tom Brady fumble in Super Bowl LII that was one of the biggest plays in the team’s 41-33 victory. The 25-year-old pro could be a sound addition.
4. CB Akhello Witherspoon (Pittsburgh Steelers)
Only five teams in the league gave up more passing yards per game than Steve Spagnuolo’s unit this past season. Some of that was a product of a less-than-potent pass rush that produced just 31 sacks in 17 regular-season games and a combined five quarterback traps in three playoff games vs. the Steelers (2), Bills (2) and Bengals (1).
But perhaps the most damning statistic when it came to the Kansas City secondary was this fact. Including the postseason, there were 285 games played in the NFL in 2021. There were only four occasions in which a player totaled at least 200 receiving yards.
Two of those came against the Chiefs in the form of Bengals rookie Ja’Marr Chase (266 yards in Week 17) and Bills wideout Gabriel Davis (201 yards in the AFC Divisional Playoffs).
Andy Reid’s team gave up 27 touchdown passes during the regular seasons and eight more in the postseason.
Could the team lose talented cornerback Charvarius Ward to free agency? He led the Chiefs with 10 passes defensed and totaled two interceptions this past year. He also knocked down three more passes in the playoffs.
Akhello Witherspoon had a strong stretch run for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He wound up leading the team with three interceptions and tied for the club lead with nine passes defensed.
3. RB Marlon Mack (Indianapolis Colts)
Head coach Andy Reid has had his share of standout running backs during his coaching career. During his days with the Philadelphia Eagles, he utilized the talents of reliable Duce Staley and Pro Bowlers such as Brian Westbrook and eventually LeSean McCoy.
In his first season as the Chiefs’ head coach in 2013, Jamaal Charles earned All-Pro accolades for the second time in his career. That season, he amassed a career-high 1,980 yards from scrimmages and a league-best 19 touchdowns. In 2017, rookie running back Kareem Hunt won an NFL rushing title. The offense also benefitted from the play of Spencer Ware, Charcandrick West and Super Bowl LIV hero Damien Williams.
With the final pick in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Chiefs opted for LSU running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire. He’s had his moments but has struggled to stay on the field.
Marlon Mack was the Colts’ workhorse for a brief spurt. But he was lost after one game in 2020. And with the emergence of All=Pro Jonathan Taylor, he barely saw the field this past season. With Darrel Williams (who led the team in rushing yards in ’21) and Jerick McKinnon set to become free agents in March, could the Chiefs add this proven commodity?
2. LB Leighton Vander Esch (Dallas Cowboys)
This week, the Chiefs parted ways with veteran linebacker Anthony Hitchens. Originally a fourth-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys in 2014, he signed a five-year, $45 million contract with Kansas City in 2018 (via Spotrac). That first year, he led the club with 135 tackles and added 21 more stops in the playoffs. He led the Chiefs in tackles once again in 2019 and finished second in stops the past two seasons.
This past year, he started 15 regular-season contests for Andy Reid’s club and only rookie Nick Bolton (112) came up with more total tackles (80) than the eight-year veteran. But the Chiefs finished 27th in the league in total defense and these days are more reliant on takeaways (29 in 2021) than actually stifling an opponent. Hitchens came up with only one opponent turnover in four seasons with the club.
Speaking of one-time Cowboys linebackers, Dallas declined the option on 2018 first-round pick Leighton Vander Esch. He was a Pro Bowler as a rookie and led the team with 138 tackles, to go along with two interceptions and seven passes defensed.
Injuries became a factor the next two seasons but in 2021, he bounced back and played in every game for the team and totaled 77 tackles. And Vander Esch racked up a club-best 13 stops in the playoff loss to the 49ers.
1. S Quandre Diggs (Seattle Seahawks)
The issues for the Chiefs’ defense have already been well-documented. And while star defensive lineman Chris Jones leads the front seven, safety Tyrann Mathieu is the catalyst in the secondary.
In three seasons with the club, the former member of the Cardinals and Texans has picked off 13 passes (plus 1 more in the 2020 playoffs), four fumble recoveries and 27 passes defensed. But he’s also slated to become a free agent on March 16.
Versatile Quandre Diggs has proven he can play anywhere in the secondary. Originally a sixth-round draft choice by the Lions in 2015, he was dealt to the Seahawks during the 2019 season and has flourished in his new surroundings. He played in five games that year for Pete Carroll’s club and picked off three passes.
Over the past two seasons, Diggs has started every game for the Seahawks and earned Pro Bowl honors in both 2020 and 2021. In 38 regular-season contests with the club, he’s totaled 13 interceptions, 20 passes defensed and one forced fumble.
It wouldn’t be a shock to see the Seahawks slap the franchise tag on the seven-year veteran. Then again, imagine a ball-hawking safety tandem off Diggs and Mathieu.