One Surprise Cut the Kansas City Chiefs Could Still Make This Offseason
By Michael Luciano
The Kansas City Chiefs are going to need to get rid of some players from their 2019 championship roster, as they need to create the cap space for Patrick Mahomes and Chris Jones' eventual record-breaking contracts.
One player that the Chiefs could say goodbye to? Defensive end Alex Okafor, who failed to live up to expectations in Year 1 of a three-year deal.
Alex Okafor with the shotgun sack celly pic.twitter.com/n32DeBVgRt
— Nick Maraldo (@nickmaraldo) September 29, 2019
If the Chiefs cut Okafor, they would only be on the hook for $6 million in dead cap. But all told, it may be worth it.
The Chiefs have several potential avenues they could go in terms of finding a replacement. They could go with the low-risk signing that is former first-round pick Taco Charlton, promote former second-round picks Tanoh Kpassagnon and Breeland Speaks to a starting role, or give the reps to 2020 fifth-round pick Mike Danna, who impressed at the Shrine Bowl.
All four have a legit claim to the starting spot considering how poor Okafor was last year despite his five sacks.
per PFF, Taco Charlton ranked better than Alex Okafor against both the run (45.9 > 39.6) and rushing the passer (58.3 > 54.2).
— Chiefs Channel (@ChiefsChannel) May 2, 2020
And keep in mind, Taco didn’t have Frank Clark and Chris Jones occupying blockers like Okafor did.
Okafor was uninspiring when he was on the field last season, and the signing of Charlton, development of Speaks and Kpassagnon, and drafting of Danna could prove that the Chiefs are looking for someone with a bit more juice as a pass rusher than Okafor.