After a disastrous 2024 season at left tackle, the Kansas City Chiefs spent lots of resources addressing the problem this offseason. First, Kansas City signed former San Francisco 49ers left tackle Jaylon Moore to a two-year deal worth $30 million. Though Moore was a backup for the 49ers, he showed promise in his limited snaps, which is why he was brought in.
Still, the Chiefs drafted Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons with the 32nd pick in this year’s draft. That said, many fans and analysts thought Simmons would sit this year and be Kansas City’s left tackle for the future. However, recent news points to that not being the case.
On Tuesday, Adam Teicher of ESPN appeared on SportsRadio810 and said, “if Josh Simmons is ready to go, he will be the Chiefs starting left tackle to begin the season. Right now Jaylon Moore is viewed as Plan B, but it’s all dependent on Simmons’ knee.” (h/t Chiefs Blitz). This is huge news for Kansas City’s offensive line.
Teicher’s comments on the Chiefs’ left tackle situation are shocking. Although many Chiefs fans figured Simmons would eventually become the starter, many figured that Moore would at least begin the season as the starter. Over his four seasons in San Francisco, Moore played 826 snaps, allowing five sacks, eight quarterback hits, 18 QB hurries, and 31 QB pressures, according to PFF.
Last season, he allowed one sack, two quarterback hits, seven quarterback hurries, and 10 QB pressures in 271 snaps. Moreover, he recorded a pass blocking grade of 731, a run-blocking grade of 70.1, and an overall grade of 74.9. That performance helped him earn his two-year, $30 million contract with the Chiefs.
Despite that, it seems Kansas City is willing to take a chance starting Simmons right away if he’s healthy. In normal circumstances, wanting to play the player you drafted at 32nd overall if he’s healthy makes sense. But, in this case, sitting Moore, whom they just paid $30 million in favor of a rookie, doesn’t make the most sense.
Nevertheless, that sounds like the way Andy Reid and the coaching staff are leaning. In that case, paying attention to OTAs and training camp to monitor the left tackle situation will be important.
