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Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach held his annual pre-draft press conference with local journalists on Thursday morning, marking the first time Veach had the opportunity to discuss the club’s top free-agent additions.
Since taking the job in 2017, Veach has consistently ensured the Chiefs’ roster has starting-caliber players at each position ahead of the draft, providing the team with flexibility when it comes time to pick.
“The goal and objective is always to position yourself and your team so that when you get to the draft, you can unlock the full potential of your board and not have to be stressed out and take the best player available,” said Veach. “How you go about that is different every year, right? Depending on your cash and cap and what players are available and how many players you’re losing, and what have you. So it’s a unique challenge every year.”
LT Jaylon Moore
Veach explained that his philosophy emphasizes adding talent to the trenches on both sides of the ball, and his marquee move during free agency was to acquire former San Francisco 49ers left tackle Jaylon Moore.
In recent seasons, Kansas City’s left tackle position has been a bit of a carousel — a point Veach openly acknowledged as he spoke to the media.
“I don’t think it’s a secret,” he started. “I want to get some stability there at the left tackle position. [Moore’s] a guy that — I think the only downside was just the lack of starts during his career.”
In four seasons, Moore has logged just 12 regular-season starts, but that can be reconciled by the player ahead of him on the 49ers’ depth chart.
“When you consider the fact that he played behind a first-ballot Hall of Fame player in Trent Williams, you can see why,” noted Veach. “But he’s athletic, he’s a smart kid, and we did a lot of work on him during the [2021] pre-draft process years ago. Always had a liking, taken a liking to the kid. I thought he had a game that translates. And credit to him that when he had a chance to go out there and log six or seven starts last year, he did a really good job.
“Now, the next step is maintaining that level of play throughout the course and the duration of a season. But again, we’re super excited to add him and hopefully provide some stability to that left side of the line.”
Rounding out the offensive line, Veach reaffirmed the team’s confidence in 2024 second-round pick Kingsley Suamataia at left guard, stemming from last season’s Week 18 start. Currently, the projected starting lineup from left to right includes Moore, Suamataia, Creed Humphrey, Trey Smith and Jawaan Taylor.
CB Kristian Fulton
Similar to the Chiefs’ challenges at left tackle, finding a reliable third cornerback proved to be an issue for the Chiefs in 2024. To help solve the problem, Kansas City signed former Tennessee Titans (and Los Angeles Chargers) cornerback Kristian Fulton.
“Losing [L’Jarius Sneed] last year, and Jaylen Watson was having a really good year,” recalled Veach. “[Watson] got hurt. Nazeeh [Johnson] got hurt last year. We had some guys get banged up. The way Steve [Spagnuolo] does things on that back end requires a lot of depth there. You can never have enough good corners.”
Veach revealed that he and his personnel staff had their eyes on Fulton ahead of the 2020 NFL Draft, where he was ultimately taken by the Titans at No. 61 in the second round.
“Kristian was a guy that we liked coming out as well,” said Veach. “He was right there, and I think he went a few picks before I think we ended up selecting Willie Gay. But a guy we did a lot of work on and liked him.”
RB Elijah Mitchell
Remember how well the 2021 Jerick McKinnon signing worked out for the Chiefs? That appears to have been the inspiration to bring former 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell aboard for 2024.
“[McKinnon] was a guy that had a great career in Minnesota, went to the Niners and just couldn’t get healthy, couldn’t get right, was always banged up.
“We’re like, ‘[Mitchell’s] still young, and although he’s battled a lot of injuries, we’ve always liked the tape. We’ve always liked the person, great kid.’ Similar skill set in a sense. He’s explosive. He has great hands. I’m sure you even heard Kyle Shanahan talk about when he’s healthy, how good he is.”
In a 2022 interview with NBC Sports Bay Area, the 49ers head coach discussed Mitchell’s knack for hitting the right hole in his complex offense.
“He’s very natural at that,” said Shanahan. “He’s a guy who, if he misses it, you say one thing and you could just tell, he’s got it. You don’t have to overcoach him. He rarely misses the right hole, and when he hits it, there’s no hesitation. He’s not worried about anything, he’s running hard, protecting that ball and going downhill.”
It sounds like if Mitchell can stay on the field, he could quietly be an important player for the Chiefs in 2025.
“It’s no secret with him that he’s got to stay healthy,” Veach added of Mitchell. “He’ll have to get through training camp and get through a season healthy. But our trainers like what they saw in regard to his rehab from his injury last season. And so hopefully we can get him on the field, keep him on the field, because I think when he’s healthy, he provides an explosive dynamic in both the run and pass game.”
