Mid Free Agency Mock

[texaschief]

I know most of you are thinking that the Chiefs are done in free agency. They're not. They're sitting there with about $6million in cap room remaining WITH Albert on the books. However, if the Chiefs pull off a trade of Albert, not only do they recoup the picks they spent on Alex Smith, but also dump the $9million or so they owe Albert. That leaves them $12m or so after rookies are signed. That's a pretty big number if you're looking for a couple impact players in free agency to fill in at FS, ILB, or provide depth across the board.

So, here's my mock after the first part of free agency. (Note that this mock is what I would do if I'm making the calls and not necessarily what I think Dorsey/Reid will do)


Chiefs trade Albert to Miami for #42 and a conditional pick in 2014

Chiefs trade #1 to NYJ for #9, #13 (via TB for Revis), and #39 (1650 pt difference) The Bucs are desperate for CB help. Don't be shocked if that trade happens. The Jets are desperate for QB help. Don't be shocked if they make a move up the board. Perhaps not all the way up to #1, but they're not going to be content with Mark Sanchez heading into 2013 and the next best option will be a top 5 pick.


1. Jets- Geno Smith --- NYJ is going to do something dramatic to fix their QB position. They'll trade Revis to Tampa for their first round pick and they'll package those picks to KC to trade up for the next best QB option on this year's market. Smith is the largest remaining splash and I don't think this scenario is too far fetched. Sitting at #9, there's no way they can upgrade their QB position by standing still. So, instead of paying the best CB in the league, they'll trade him for an asset that will allow them to address the most important position on the field.

2. Jags- Dion Jordan --- Jags are set at LT with Monroe. They haven't been linked to any of the QB's, so the most versatile defender in this draft makes sense here.

3. Raiders- Dee Millner--- The arrival of Wes Welker and Alex Smith in the division along with departures like Huff from their secondary make this pick a necessity.

4. Eagles- Sharrif Floyd When was the last time you heard of a great LT contributing in a Chip Kelly offense? Philly needs help on the O-line, but I don't think it comes here. Getting the best 4-3 player in the draft helps a ton.

5. Lions- Ezekiel Anzah--- Lost Avril. But they've got Suh, Fairley, and Vanden Bosch on that line and the Lions have been investing heavily on their D-line.

6. Browns- Cordarrelle Patterson--- QUICK! Who were the starting WR's for CLE last season (hint: it wasn't the recently departed Josh Cribbs)

7. Cardinals- Matt Barkley--- He's either 1 or 1a in this QB draft class and the Cardinals have nobody currently in-house to compete at that position of any upgrade over last season.

8. Bills-Ryan Nassib--- Bills want this guy in the worst way. Some mocks have him going #1 overall to the Bills who trade up to get him. I can't imagine a scenario where Nassib isn't wearing a Buffalo on his head next season.

9. CHIEFS- BOTH elite LT's are still on the board here. Chiefs take Joekel. Eagles could take a LT and if that's the case, the Chiefs end up with Fischer instead.

10. Titans-Chance Warmack--- Roos at LT, Levitre as a free agent and now Warmack at the other OG spot and suddenly, the Titans have a very potent OL.

11. Chargers- Eric Fischer--- Sure hit the jackpot with this one, didn't they? Could end up with Lane Johnson instead if Fischer isn't there anymore.

12. Dolphins-Tavon Austin--- opposite Mike Williams will be a nice duo for Tannehill

13. CHIEFS- BPA... is that Lane Johnson for RT, Vacarro for FS, or Lotulelei at DL? BPA in my mind is still Lotulelei. Things went well at his pro day and the heart thing seems to be a minor issue. I know we've got DeVito, but he's not Lotulelei.

39. Matt Elam-S Florida
42. Justin Pugh-OL Syracuse (Right Tackle)
63. Khaseem Greene-LB Rutgers
3b. Tyler Bray-QB-Tennessee
4th-Marcus Lattimore-RB South Carolina
5th-Tyrann Mathieu-DB LSU
6th-Marquise Goodwin- WR Texas
7th-Uzoma Nwachukwu- WR TX A&M


The Chiefs are set on the O-line with Joekel and Pugh on the ends with Stephenson at the swing spot. Solid up the middle with Allen, Hudson, and Asamoah as well.

Chiefs bring in competition at the WR spot with Avery, Goodwin, and Nwachukwu. They also bring in Lattimore who was a projected 1st round pick before his knee injury. The Chiefs have Charles as their featured back and can afford to bring Lattimore back at a slower pace than some other teams could. If he comes back completely right, the Chiefs would essentially have an Adrian Peterson/Jamaal Charles backfield.

Flip over to defense and it's REALLY difficult to find a hole. The D-line boasts 3 top 15 picks. The linebackers have 2 1st round picks and 2 3rd round picks. The defensive backs include 2 1st round picks and 4 2nd round picks. That's not including Tyrann Mathieu who could've been a top 10 pick overall if he played last season. Matt Elam next to Eric Berry is stupid good. There's depth all over that secondary with this personnel.

The Jets are hell-bent on trading Revis. #13 overall seems like fair value for the best CB in the league if the Buccs are prepared to pay him long-term. The Jets don't need two picks behind all those QB hungry teams ahead of them... they need a QB. While this may seem like a "dream scenario," it's definitely one that doesn't take too much stretching to see it come to fruition. I think it's a trade both teams would happily do.

Oh yeah, and the Chiefs still have another $12m in cap space to address further depth issues on the O-line, D-line, and at LB. Sure hope the Jets fall in love with a QB.

[Ryfo18]

And if it's the much more likely scenario of V. Young/D. Ferguson or J. Russell/J. Thomas? Let's not forget that both Young and Russell were deemed "can't miss" QB's coming out of college. They didn't have nearly the kind of question marks that are attached to Geno Smith.

Realize too that Joeckel could be Robert Gallery, Levi Brown, Mike Williams, or Kenyatta Walker. I'd take Vince Young over any of them.

[texaschief]

Realize too that Joeckel could be Robert Gallery, Levi Brown, Mike Williams, or Kenyatta Walker. I'd take Vince Young over any of them.

Robert Gallery is an All-Pro OG. Levi Brown is still playing LT in this league. Kenyatta Walker started 73 of 77 games during his pro career after being selected #14 overall. You would take an unemployed, 3-year flop, Vince Young over those guys? There's nothing you can say to justify that statement. You had to dig DEEP to find bust LT's and even those that are deemed "busts" still had pretty productive careers. Definitely not something you could say about Vince Young. Hell, I'd take Gallery, Brown, and Walker over Vince Young RIGHT NOW. What a horrible statement.

[jap1]

Forgot to mention that you can still have V. Young! He worked out at the Texas Pro-day a couple days ago! LOL.

[brdempsey69]

Great. He's really been crucial in turning the Browns franchise around...

But of course, the same proverbial copout that has been posted around the web by that herd of sheep wearing diapers out there, that are threatening to crap in those diapers if the Chiefs take an O-Lineman with their 1st pick. All the while, of course, blatantly not mentioning what's been happening with Browns player/personnel and front office/coaching staff since the selection of Joe Thomas was made. The reality is, selecting Joe Thomas was one of the few things that they've done right in that time span up to this day.

The problem with that herd of sheep is that their minds were poisoned by the Pioli regime and they're still thinking with Pioli's loser-type mentality. I suspect many of them wish that he was still the GM.

Joeckel was a "1st round pick" when blocking for Tannehill. He's a solid LT. When you get to block for a mobile QB like Manziel, your job gets a lot easier. I think he has a tough time going against the best pass rushers in the world on a weekly basis though.

That's funny, I've watched him go against the nations best pass-rushers and stonewall them repeatedly. Granted, there may be struggles in year 1, being that he'll be a 21-year old rookie, but he hasn't reached his physical peak yet, and I can easily see an All-Pro performer by year 2 or 3. I won't rule out Fisher, though. The Chiefs had private workout with him on Tues. and he may have convinced them that's he's the guy, for all any of us know.

He is a boring, safe pick.

According to whom? The fantasy football kiddies that can't put O-Lineman on their fantasy football teams & are more concerned with the results of their fantasy football pools or sweepstakes they enter, than they are with the success the Chiefs have on the actual football field?

And what about the so-called "exciting" pick that the fantasy football kiddies were given at pick #5 in 2010? That has proved to be as exciting as a turd floating around in a public swimming pool -- with the play on the field equivalent to boot.

The Chiefs as a whole won't be that much better IMO, but whatever.

Rubbish! If blocking up front by their O-Line -- especially pass protection -- improves, then they will be much better. Don't believe me? A paltry 18 TD's on Offense in 2011 followed by a blazing 17 TD's on Offense in 2012. And it wasn't just the QB's, either. Too often, opposing defenders were spending more time in the Chiefs backfield than the Chiefs backs were and you don't address that issue by taking a QB ( especially when you've already traded for Alex Smith ) or any Defensive player -- you do it by drafting either Joeckel or Fisher. Anybody that can't see that O-Line is the teams most glaring need is being blatantly blind and most certainly didn't watch the games very closely.

If Geno/Joeckel turns out like Ryan/Long though, I won't forgive this franchise for being a bunch of scaredy cats.

Whatever success Geno Smith might have with another team is irrelevant. Same as Russell Wilson in Seattle last year, same as Kelly and Marino in '83, same Montana in '79. There are no guarantees whatsoever that any of those guys would have had the same success if KC had drafted them, that they had elsewhere and anyone thinking otherwise is only p!ssing on their own heads and telling themselves it's raining -- especially given that the Chiefs are 0 for 17 when it comes to drafting QB's since 1970.

[brdempsey69]

And if it's the much more likely scenario of V. Young/D. Ferguson or J. Russell/J. Thomas? Let's not forget that both Young and Russell were deemed "can't miss" QB's coming out of college. They didn't have nearly the kind of question marks that are attached to Geno Smith.

Then they obviously made the right choice. I won't rule it out. I just don't see it happneing.

I can see it happening. Joeckel wouldn't be the 1st O-Lineman from Texas A&M that the Chiefs took with their 1st pick in the draft. They took G Mo Moorman, from Texas A&M, in '68 and that's the guy that perfectly executed the trap block on HOF DT Alan Page in SB IV that sprung RB Mike Garrett for the Chiefs first TD in that game on the play that's become infamous known as "65 toss power trap". When healthy, he was an excellent player for 6 years before he retired for unknown reasons & the Chiefs O-Line did suffer from his absence for years afterward.

One more thing. The last time the Chiefs drafted an O-Lineman with their top pick, that was the Outland Trophy winner the year before, that player went on to have a stellar 14-year career that included 12 rightfully earned Pro Bowl appearances. His name was Will Shields.

IMO, given KC's QB struggles of the last 2 decades, passing on Geno would be worse than taking him and him being Russell/Young.

Have you been sleeping under a rock all that time or what? That QB list would include Montana, Gannon, and Green. I don't recall them struggling -- except maybe Gannon for a bit before he caught fire in late '97 and Green in some games in 2001.

Realize too that Joeckel could be Robert Gallery, Levi Brown, Mike Williams, or Kenyatta Walker. I'd take Vince Young over any of them.

Or he could be successful like the other 70+ percent of LT's taken in the top 15 in the last 2 decades and could be another Joe Thomas. LT's have the lowest bust rate of any position in football. That makes Joeckel or Fisher worth the pick and addresses the most glaring need the Chiefs have right now.

[texaschief]

I can see it happening. Joeckel wouldn't be the 1st O-Lineman from Texas A&M that the Chiefs took with their 1st pick in the draft. They took G Mo Moorman, from Texas A&M, in '68 and that's the guy that perfectly executed the trap block on HOF DT Alan Page in SB IV that sprung RB Mike Garrett for the Chiefs first TD in that game on the play that's become infamous known as "65 toss power trap". When healthy, he was an excellent player for 6 years before he retired for unknown reasons & the Chiefs O-Line did suffer from his absence for years afterward.

One more thing. The last time the Chiefs drafted an O-Lineman with their top pick, that was the Outland Trophy winner the year before, that player went on to have a stellar 14-year career that included 12 rightfully earned Pro Bowl appearances. His name was Will Shields.



Have you been sleeping under a rock all that time or what? That QB list would include Montana, Gannon, and Green. I don't recall them struggling -- except maybe Gannon for a bit before he caught fire in late '97 and Green in some games in 2001.



Or he could be successful like the other 70+ percent of LT's taken in the top 15 in the last 2 decades and could be another Joe Thomas. LT's have the lowest bust rate of any position in football. That makes Joeckel or Fisher worth the pick and addresses the most glaring need the Chiefs have right now.

...but but but... IT'S GENO SMITH!!! How could ANY team pass on this guy????

[Ryfo18]

...but but but... IT'S GENO SMITH!!! How could ANY team pass on this guy????

Funny. He won't make it past pick 3 come draft day. Remember when you thought we should take Te'o at #1? I do. Laughable.

[Bike]

If Geno is there at #3, I'm sure the faiders will be stupid enough to snatch him up - ala Jamarques Russell.

[Ryfo18]

My overall thoughts on this are that Joeckel/Fisher are solid picks and will be solid players for many years. So don't confuse my reservations with displeasure. My thoughts on each:

Joeckel

He looked outstanding on film this year and has the looks to be a top 5 LT in the league. My reservations are that he blocked for Manziel, a running quarterback, last season. Defensive ends are often assigned different roles to contain the QB, so I try to realize this when watching, but it's hard to separate it. Nevertheless, he should be fine at the next level.

Fisher

This dude is a mauler, and I love to watch him. My worries about him are the level of competition he's faced (mostly MAC opponents). Again, it's tough to translate that to the NFL, but the technique is there.

I wouldn't sleep on Lane Johnson either. He's got a lot of room to grow and could end up being the best of the 3. He's a very solid LT. Quick feet, huge base, long arms. He's got all the tools.


That's great, we're getting a solid LT any way you look at it. I don't think they'll miss with this pick with whatever they choose, Dorsey knows his ****.

I'm not backing away from my view that Geno Smith should be the #1 overall pick though. Obviously we're past that point with the acquisition of Alex Smith. We've been spoiled since last year with RGIII and Luck coming out as can't miss QBs. For the most part, can't miss QBs aren't there in the draft. Guys like Ryan, Roethlisberger, and Rodgers all had their flaws. However, Geno has an incredible skillset with which to work with. Alex Smith had better lead this team to the playoffs and get victories, cause otherwise he'll be good enough to achieve 8-8 or 9-7, and they'll never get past the QB hump.

[doobs_05]

Have you been sleeping under a rock all that time or what? That QB list would include Montana, Gannon, and Green. I don't recall them struggling -- except maybe Gannon for a bit before he caught fire in late '97 and Green in some games in 2001.

I think he was talking about drafting QBs.