Arrowhead Pride
Kansas City signed the veteran tackle earlier this week
On Friday, we learned that the Kansas City Chiefs were going to solidify their offensive line by signing veteran left tackle D.J. Humphries, who spent eight seasons playing for the Arizona Cardinals. The former first-round draft pick tore his ACL in 2023’s Week 17. That ended up making him a cap casualty in Arizona.
Humphries was just recently cleared to play. The Chiefs wasted little time in signing him — and for good reason.
During November, left tackle Wanya Morris and right tackle Jawaan Taylor have both struggled. Taylor has given up four sacks and 11 pressures, while Morris has allowed a sack and 11 pressures. Over the season, Taylor’s 11 penalties are tied for the league’s fourth-most. Morris has collected five holding flags this season. Since the team lacked overall depth at tackle, the Chiefs have had few options to remedy the situation.
Since the 30-year-old Humphries is coming off of a knee injury, he will be far from a sure thing. Still, if he can return to his prior form, Kansas City could be in a good spot as it prepares for its playoff push.
Humphries plays with good quickness out of his stance, so he’s rarely beaten around the edge.
With a good fundamental drive-and-catch into his vertical pass protection, he is routinely able to work defenders around the arc, providing provide his quarterback with a solid pocket.
Humphries has plenty of pop in his hands. He uses well-timed strikes to stop defenders in their tracks, blowing up their rush plans.
Just the same, Humphries makes his fair share of mistakes. In 2023, he allowed five sacks and 28 pressures. He strains to play in and play out — but when he is beaten, his recovery can get him out of jams.
As this play begins, the edge rusher hits Humphries with a nasty bull rush. Humphries feels himself losing ground, but he trusts his training. In one clean motion, he stops the bull rush by dropping his hips, regaining leverage and anchoring himself to the ground.
Humphries also plays with a nasty streak. That will make him a good fit in Kansas City’s locker room.
In this battle with All-Pro pass rusher Nick Bosa, Humphries starts to lose some ground — but holds on just long enough for his quarterback to make the throw.
Bosa puts his hands in the air to try to bat the pass down — and Humphries recognizes it. In one smooth motion, he resets his hands on Bosa’s chest, then turns and puts his facemask through the defender’s chest, driving him to the ground.
This rep wasn't perfect, but it was a tone-setting play — and that’s just what the Chiefs need.
Humphries is a strong run blocker. He displays flexibility and footwork to win base blocks.
Here we see Humphries with low pads. He opens his hips to a 45-degree angle, loading up his hands...
