Well, this is just getting re-donkulous!
Thursday might turn out to be one of the most important days of the 2013 off-season for the Kansas City Chiefs as they snatched free agent cornerback Sean Smith away from the Oakland Raiders to fill out arguably the league’s best secondary. About the same time, West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith was making jaws drop at his Pro Day, opening up the possibility of the Chiefs getting a minor haul for their #1 pick on draft day.
Also, in a move not involving someone named Smith, the Chiefs cut former QB Matt Cassel, freeing up nearly $6 million in cap space. Don’t feel bad for Cassel however. A few hours after his release by the Chiefs, he agreed to a one-year $4 million contract with the Minnesota Vikings and could pressure current Vikes QB, Christian Ponder, for the starting job. No … seriously.
Sean Smith, 25, had just visited the Raiders, a team desperate for help in the secondary, but the Chiefs swooped in and got the big, athletic cornerback to agree to a 3-year $18 million contract with about $11 million guaranteed. Smith, a second-round pick by Miami in the 2009 draft, gives the Chiefs what they’ve been lacking for a few years – a big (6-2, 215 lbs) cornerback that can match up size-wise with many of the wide receivers the Chiefs will be playing in 2013. The Chiefs cornerbacks, as a whole, have tended to be shorter over the last few years, such as the 5-10, 190-lb Brandon Flowers.
The expectation is that Flowers and Smith will play the two corner spots with recently signed Dunta Robinson playing the nickel corner spot. Many football watchers are already excited for the two match-ups between the Chiefs and the Denver Broncos, who have Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, and the newly-signed Wes Welker in the fold, with that guy named Peyton throwing the ball around. The Chiefs now have the kind of talent in their secondary (don’t forget All-Pro safety Eric Berry!) that they don’t have to fear anyone’s receiving corps.
As far as the other Smith is concerned, Geno Smith reportedly completed 60-of-64 passes at his Pro Day in front of a throng of scouts, coaches and front office personnel around the league. Completing nearly all passes in a Pro Day is nothing – the QB is throwing scripted passes with receivers that he knows, and no defenders on the field. If a quarterback doesn’t complete 95% of his throws, there is something wrong.
However, what the Chiefs and their fans should be excited about is the fact that Smith LOOKED good with his mechanics and has dispelled some of the concerns many teams had about his ability to play QB in the NFL. That means Smith is rocketing up draft boards across the league, and with the Chiefs holding the #1 overall pick in the draft, a QB-needy team might want to ensure they get ahold of Smith and trade for the Chiefs pick.
That could bring more picks in the early rounds of the draft this year and maybe next, giving the Chiefs the necessary tools to further improve their roster. And, if the Chiefs can make a trade but stay in the top 10 picks for this year, they can still draft a high-quality player like offensive tackle Eric Fisher or guards Chance Warmack and Jonathan Cooper to further strengthen the offensive line. They could add explosiveness to the offense by taking a wide receiver like Bowe-clone with tremendous upside Cordarrelle Patterson, or a speedster like Geno Smith’s teammate Tayvon Austin.
Or, they could try to get another pass rusher to pressure the opposing quarterback and make their new secondary even better. Players such as Sharrif Floyd, Bjoern Werner, Star Lotulelei, or Ezekiel Ansah might make the Chiefs defense elite. It should be noted that one of the fastest-rising names on the defensive side of the ball is Oregon’s DE Dion Jordan (6-6, 248), an athletic freak that can play almost anywhere on defense. Both Andy Reid and John Dorsey attended Oregon’s Pro Day on Thursday along with the entire defensive coaching staff. Jordan is recovering from shoulder surgery, but is expected to be 100% when training camp opens in August.
It is a strange time to be a Chiefs fan because the new regime is not shy about making moves and is a big-time player in free agency. For this year at least, it looks like the team isn’t going to sit back until mid-summer to see how things shake out. With Manning and the Broncos at the top of this division, the Chiefs can’t afford to play it too safe.
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