Arrowhead Pride
Nobody should be arguing that the Kansas City Chiefs’ roster is at the level of the 2022 team that won Super Bowl LVII.
That was probably the most well-rounded roster in the era of quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Tight end Travis Kelce was still in his prime, the draft was an absolute gold mine and the offense adjusted schematically to what opposing defenses were presenting.
This team might not be that, but it might not have to be.
The AFC isn’t what it was at that point, either. It seems the entire conference is more balanced, or forgiving, than it was a few years ago. Blemishes might not be exposed as often or as easily. That’s important because it feels as if every AFC team features some pretty significant blemishes, Chiefs included.
This roster is judged more harshly than its peers. It should be. The expectation is Super Bowl or bust.
Does the roster pass the test? We won’t know the true answer until the season plays out, of course. But some recent ESPN breakdowns suggest the roster is good enough to make it out of the conference once again.
Jeremy Fowler recently completed his annual breakdown of the top-10 players at each position across the league.
The Chiefs had seven players represented.
It’s worth noting that seven is the most players represented on these top-10 lists by any team in the AFC. The only other conference foes with at least five players represented were the Houston Texans (6), Denver Broncos (5) and Baltimore Ravens (5).
Maybe one list is too small a sample size, even if it is created based upon the opinions of NFL executives, coaches, and scouts. Fair enough.
For those not convinced of the strength of this Chiefs roster, let’s also utilize Bill Barnwell of ESPN’s recent piece breaking down every player in the NFL worth at least one first-round pick in a trade.
As an aside, the entire column is worth your time, but for the purposes of this column, we’ll break it down in a “Cliff Notes” version.
The Chiefs, according to Barnwell, have seven players worth at least one first-round selection in a trade: Patrick Mahomes (seven first-round picks) and Mansoor Delane, Creed Humphrey, Chris Jones, George Karlaftis, Josh Simmons, and Trey Smith (all worth one first-round pick).
The article’s idea was not to suggest that any of these players will be traded, but rather to take a deep dive into each player’s value.
Included within that value are a player’s age, contract, position, off-field makeup and overall on-field performance. Maintaining a starting lineup with seven players worth at least a first-round pick is no small feat.
The total is, once again,...
