After not finalizing a long-term deal with the Kansas City Chiefs, Offensive Tackle Orlando Brown has not shown up to training camp. Many knew to expect this if a deal wasn’t finalized before the deadline. However, can the Chiefs afford to go into the season without their Pro Bowl Tackle?
The Kansas City Chiefs are about finished with their first week in St. Joseph for training camp. All of the star players are there, ready to undergo another season to chase another Super Bowl. But there is one person missing from the campus of Missouri Western State University.
Orlando Brown Jr, the Pro Bowl offensive tackle has yet to sign his franchise tag. A lot of reporters around the league are wondering what will happen if doesn’t sign the tag prior to the season. Currently, in St. Joe, the Chiefs are going with Roderick Johnson, a former Houston Texan at left tackle. He is a versatile lineman that can play anywhere on the line, which the Chiefs love. It’s good the Chiefs have a backup player like Roderick, as he a swing tackle, he is great for depth and getting reps with the first team is always good for confidence as a young player. However, is this what the Chiefs want to be the line to be if Brown does not come back? Here are the options if we go into the season without Orlando Brown.
The top options for the Chiefs offensive line without Orlando Brown are Lucas Niang at Left Tackle, Joe Thuney at Left Guard, Creed Humphries at Center, Trey Smith at Right Guard, and Darian Kinnard at Right tackle. Although Kinnard was drafted in the 5th round this year, his poise and athleticism are what made him stand out. He has an enormous reach with big hands and he has nasty block finishes when blocking opposing defenders. That matches the intensity we already have on the right side with Trey Smith. Niang is coming off of a catastrophic injury and he may not be ready for the start of the season, but he was drafted out of Texas Christian University to play left tackle, but played right tackle last year. The Chiefs also have Andrew Wylie who re-signed with Kansas City this offseason, but Wylie had a lot of issues handling speed rushers on the left side, but don’t be surprised if he moves left if Orlando Brown doesn’t come back by week one.
The Chiefs need to get Orlando Brown back on the left side, he is invaluable to the Chiefs and it seems like most of the offensive players agree. Orlando is a great tackle, but there will be problems to have to replace him to begin the season. The Chiefs really cannot survive all season without Brown, he was a Pro Bowler in his first full season out on the blind side, and he can only improve at protecting Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs need to get him to sign his franchise tag and work on getting Zeus signed long-term in the 2023 offseason.
