3 defensive standouts from Chiefs training camp so far
The Kansas City Chiefs completed their tenth open training camp practice at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, Missouri on Thursday. The players are starting to get back into the swing of real football again, which also means that several of those players are beginning to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. […]
The Kansas City Chiefs completed their tenth open training camp practice at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, Missouri on Thursday.
The players are starting to get back into the swing of real football again, which also means that several of those players are beginning to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. Who have been the standout defenders that can help this unit go from good to great in 2023?
Free agent defensive back flashing ball skills
The Chiefs didn't create a lot of turnovers by way of interceptions in 2023. In fact, their 11 interceptions in 17 games played in 2022 tied for second-to-last in the NFL in interception production.
Enter Mike Edwards, the ball-hawking free agent safety, who comes to Kansas City by way of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Edwards has recorded seven career interceptions, including three returned for touchdowns in the past two years. That's good for most in the NFL during that span as no other defender has more than two pick-sixes.
Edwards missed some time with an injury early in the offseason program, but he's been on the field during training camp for Kansas City and is relentless in his pursuit of the football.
Arrowhead Pride's Pete Sweeney noted that he's had three tip-drill interceptions during training camp so far. He also had this interception against Patrick Mahomes early on in training camp.
By our count, he's currently leading the Chiefs' defense in training camp interceptions.
Former fourth-round draft pick breaking through
Joshua Kaindoh has done absolutely zilch during his two-year NFL career. The former 2021 fourth-round draft pick has appeared in just three games since being drafted and has recorded no official game statistics. He was a healthy scratch all season last year and simply hasn't found a way onto the football field.
From the looks of things at training camp, that could all soon change. With Mike Danna and Charles Omenihu out of practice with injuries, he's received an outsized portion of the vacated first-team defensive snaps and he's flashed during that opportunity. Kaindoh had several would-be sacks during team periods in each of the past two practices.
His pass-rush plan is noticeably developed as he's winning inside and out, with both speed and power.
Rookie "climbing" and standing out in run defense
Some might think that first-round pick Felix Anudike-Uzomah has been the opposite of a standout because his repetitions with the first-team defense have been sparse. What they don't recognize is that Anudike-Uzomah is playing catch-up compared to some of his other rookie teammates. He didn't participate in rookie minicamp, OTAs and barely saw any action during mandatory minicamp due to a hand injury.
Steve Spagnuolo believes that after some early struggles, the rookie pass-rusher is trending in the right direction.
“I think Felix (Anudike-Uzomah) is climbing, I really do. I mean look (at) it, we all know he didn’t get a lot of – you know didn’t do anything in the offseason here and that set him back. I thought he was a little rusty and struggled early. (Chiefs Defensive Line Coach) Joe (Cullen) and I both, as you watch one-on-ones you watch the team periods, he’s flashing now which is a good thing. There’s a lot of – there’s still a curve there right, the learning curve, I think he’s doing pretty good right now yeah.”
Part of the learning curve comes from the fact that he's playing an entirely different position after playing 3-4 OLB at Kansas State. What's impressive about that part of it is that he's made the majority of his impact in red zone drills and in the run game.
Those are the areas of the game where he should be struggling given his transition, but to see him thriving there, well, it shows just how far he has come in a short period of time.
Chiefs LB Nick Bolton gives Patrick Mahomes taste of his own medicine
No-look passes? Try no-look interceptions.
Featured image via KMBC 9
