The Kansas City Chiefs roster is full of strengths entering the 2024 season as reigning Super Bowl champions.
The defending champions have a lot to look forward to in 2024. Not only will they begin their quest for the NFL’s first ever three-peat, but they will do so with a large portion of last year’s team returning. That means that the Kansas City Chiefs roster has many strengths on both sides of the ball. Here are just a few of the key strengths for the Chiefs in 2024.
Interior Offensive Line
The skill positions on the Chiefs offense get a lot of the headlines, and for good reason. They’re really freaking good. However, the interior line for Kansas City is a major factor in the success of the offense. This will be their fourth year together and the continuity speaks for itself on the field.
Creed Humphrey might just be the best center in football, especially since Jason Kelce has officially retired. Joe Thuney is right there with him in terms of level of play, as both have collected Pro Bowl selections in each of the past two seasons. Trey Smith is the somewhat overlooked man in the trio. However, he has been rock solid for the Chiefs, starting in all but one game in his first three seasons. This group not only paves the way for Isiah Pacheco, but also helps protect the most important player in the league (Patrick Mahomes).
Pass Rush
When healthy, the Chiefs four players who can get to the quarterback consistently. Chris Jones is the headliner, as he is just a few years away from breaking the 100 sack mark (assuming he keeps his current pace). Now that the Chiefs have multiple threats on the defensive line, it has become harder to focus on Jones on known passing plays.
George Karlaftis has quickly become one of the best young edge rushers in the league, going from six sacks as a rookie up to 10.5 in his second season. Across from him, at least to start the season, Mike Danna has had a quietly successful past couple of seasons. Having played in a somewhat limited capacity, he has still managed to collect 11.5 sacks over the past two years, providing good depth for the defensive line.
The X-Factor for the Chiefs defensive line, and maybe their entire defense, is Charles Omenihu. In just 11 games in 2023, he collected seven sacks, including a strip sack of Lamar Jackson in the AFC Championship game. Although he is expected to miss the start of the season, his return will give a boost of energy to the defense.
Secondary Depth
While the loss of L’Jarius Sneed certainly hurts, the Chiefs trust the guys they have on the roster to fill the void he left. They have multiple options to replace him and I wouldn’t be surprised if it is a “by committee” type of approach, at least early in the season.
Jaylen Watson and Joshua Williams played the most snaps last season and will likely get first cracks at the starting job. However, Nazeeh Johnson is the sleeping giant ready to take over. He was impressing coaches last offseason before a knee injury ended his year.
Chamarri Conner will likely slot in at the nickel, meaning one of those three guys will presumably step into Sneed’s spot. While none of them will likely live up to Sneed’s level of play, they should be able to put a more than respectable unit on the field.
