Arrowhead Pride
Entering the 2025 season, one of the biggest questions facing the Kansas City Chiefs was about the young players who would occupy the left side of the offensive line. At left tackle, the team would start rookie Josh Simmons — and at left guard, inexperienced second-year player Kingsley Suamataia would take over for veteran Joe Thuney.
While their performance has immediate consequences, their long-term development is also crucial to the team’s future. Now that center Creed Humphrey and right guard Trey Smith are locked into expensive long-term contracts, the left side of Kansas City’s line needs to be an affordable one that is built through the draft.
So after two games, let’s evaluate where they stand.
Early in the matchup, one of Suamataia’s best reps came on a scramble.
On this play, he uses an aggressive two-hand jump set to widen the defensive tackle. When the defender tries to rip through, Suamataia releases his inside hand, resets it on the hip, opens his hips and slides upfield to create space in the middle.
That’s good progress for a player who needed to refine his hand usage at guard.
Suamataia also put together multiple solid pass sets in the first half.
Here, he keeps his hands down after the snap — a nice change of pace to keep the rusher off balance. He then mirrors the defender’s feet, slides inside, forces a spin and switches hands to cut him off outside.
At Suamataia’s size, that kind of lateral quickness is impressive. When he locks onto a block, he can sustain it.
One of the exciting aspects of Suamataia’s profile was how his size and athleticism could boost the running game.
On this frontside double-team with Creed Humphrey, Suamataia’s punch clears the A-gap, helping to spring a 7–8 yard run. Without it, that’s a one-yard gain.
Later, he shows even more lateral quickness, cutting off a 2i and using torque to move him down the line. With Simmons assisting, Suamataia moves the defender across multiple gaps.
It’s a great example of what the athleticism of these two players can accomplish together.
Still, the film shows inconsistencies. The biggest issue — whether at tackle or guard — is recovery. When Suamataia wins, he dominates. When he loses, it’s often ugly.
On this blitz pickup, he identifies the linebacker correctly, but completely whiffs on his punch, gets stunned inside and is too slow to recover.
Here’s another example where he is slow to recover. Suamataia loses at contact, but can’t demonstrate the balance or quickness to reset and protect the pocket. That’s an area he must improve.
Josh Simmons is an incredible athlete to watch — especially since he’s coming off a torn patellar tendon.
On this rep, he uses an explosive vertical set to wall off the corner. Then he reads the cross-chop, keeps his hands patient and uses his mobility to push the rusher around the arc.
That’s elite athleticism — paired with sharp reaction time....
