Andy Reid made it perfectly clear that Donovan Smith will start at left tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs with Jawaan Taylor playing over at right.
The Kansas City Chiefs will be employing two new bookend tackles to keep Patrick Mahomes upright this season.
While I really liked their draft pick of Wanya Morris this spring, it will be Donovan Smith at left tackle and Jawaan Taylor over at right for Andy Reid’s defending Super Bowl champions. Although I trust Reid in identifying and developing offensive talent, I distinctly remember how poorly Super Bowl 55 went for the Chiefs when they faced Smith’s former team in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Smith and Taylor are newcomers to the Chiefs, but why did Kansas City spend that much money on Taylor to keep him playing over at right tackle?
Kansas City should remain on the shortlist of teams who can realistically hoist the Lombardi Trophy this year, but offensive tackle concerns are a big reason why I don’t think they will repeat.
Andy Reid is putting all his faith in Donovan Smith and Jawaan Taylor up front
While there certainly is a chance we could see Smith and Taylor play up in Kansas City, we are once again seeing the downside to what happens when you pay your franchise quarterback big money. Smith has already won a Super Bowl keeping Tom Brady upright, while Taylor spent the last two seasons with another emerging AFC star quarterback with Trevor Lawrence’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
Frankly, this goes beyond Reid. It is all about ownership and the front office being in lock step with their players and coaching staff. Top on down, Kansas City is among the best in the business. However, pretty much everybody outside of KC wants to see them fail because they are suffering from Chiefs fatigue. Mahomes will keep them afloat regardless, but they are truly the hunted now.
Overall, the Chiefs are where they are as an organization simply because they have done a better job of using the same amount of finite resources over their competitors. Unfortunately, life can be unforgiving in a sport with a hard salary cap. Kansas City had to pay a premium for good, but not great talent out there at offensive tackle. This team should be good again, but keep an eye on this.
If the Chiefs struggle at either tackle spot, it will be difficult for them to repeat this NFL season.
