Here are two true statements. First, the Kansas City Chiefs need help along their offensive line after a season that saw Patrick Mahomes take a career-high 36 sacks.
Second, the Chiefs used a first-round pick on offensive lineman Josh Simmons in this year’s NFL Draft, but fans shouldn’t pin all their hopes on Simmons fixing this offensive line immediately.
That’s especially true when you consider that not only is Simmons a rookie, but he’s coming off a torn patellar tendon last season at Ohio State. Expecting him to step in and be the immediate starter at left tackle — the most important offensive line position — feels like a miscalculation.
It also feels exactly like what the Chiefs are planning to do.
Josh Simmons is probably going to be good, but he’s also coming off a major injury
ESPN’s Adam Teicher reported that the Chiefs used Simmons as the starting left tackle during OTAs. Which, hey — that’s fine! Get him some reps!
But these were also noncontact reps. We need to see if Simmons and, more specifically, Simmons’ knee is going to hold up once contact starts before we anoint him as the savior of this offensive line. It sounds like he’s on track to start Week 1, but we haven’t even gotten to the real test yet.
The Chiefs don’t need to rush things with Simmons. Look, for example, at last year’s second-round pick, Kingsley Suamataia, a second-round pick out of BYU who started just two games for the team last year. Those two games happened to be Week 1 and Week 2, and it became clear immediately that he wasn’t ready for the left tackle role, which led to him being benched for Wanya Morris. Now, we’re in just Suamataia’s second season, and he’s already been moved to guard and is no longer in the left tackle battle.
Maybe some patience with Simmons will prevent a repeat of 2024. The Chiefs signed former 49ers tackle Jaylon Moore to a two-year, $30 million deal this offseason, but as of now, it appears he’ll be a backup for Kansas City. Why not take a bit of a cautious approach with Simmons and see what Moore can do?
Playing a guy too early can have long-term consequences. Even putting the injury situation with Simmons aside, if he goes out there, struggles like Suamataia did, and then gets benched for Moore a month into the season, you’ve killed his confidence. This isn’t a rebuilding team that can let a rookie make mistakes at the most important spot on the line — if he’s not producing early on, Andy Reid will have to make a move.
Right now, it feels like a lot of pressure is being placed on Simmons, just like how last year, a lot of pressure was being placed on Suamataia. Is Kansas City going to make the same mistake two years in a row? The potential good news, if they do, is that a pre-injury Simmons had a lot more hype around him than Suamataia, so maybe he’ll be a good-enough player to make a tough situation work. Still, it’s not a great spot to be in as a young player.
