Chiefs: One non-rookie to watch in OTAs for 2023 season
The Kansas City Chiefs have a lot of young guys coming to OTAs, but there is one guy that everyone should be watching to see his progression from last year. The Chiefs went into the 2022 season not knowing what to expect. They had just drafted a ton of rookies, most of them defense, and […]
The Kansas City Chiefs have a lot of young guys coming to OTAs, but there is one guy that everyone should be watching to see his progression from last year.
The Chiefs went into the 2022 season not knowing what to expect. They had just drafted a ton of rookies, most of them defense, and traded away their best receiver of all time to the Miami Dolphins in Tyreek Hill.
Obviously, the media didn't really know either, as most of them predicted the Chiefs would be in a rebuilding, or retooling year. However, instead, they ended up winning it all. That's what happens when you have Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, you win Super Bowls when you retool.
The general manager Brett Veach said it best at the parade, "In Kansas City, this is what a rebuilding year looks like right here!" They won the Super Bowl off the strength of their youth, outside of Mahomes, obviously.
They had four rookies in the secondary play vital snaps all throughout the postseason, and of course the ones who played on offense and the defensive line. But the secondary was huge, and it should only get better from here on out.
One guy that we should watch for in OTAs for the 2023 offseason is a guy that was a rookie last year but didn't get his shot as much as maybe the other rookies. However, he could be a starter in 2023 based on how the offseason workouts go.
The Chiefs' defensive system under Steve Spagnuolo is complicated. They run a lot of things some teams try and stay away from. One thing that almost guarantees Cook playing more this year and possibly starting in the scheme, is as the Chiefs ran some three safety sets last season with Cook, Thornhill, and Reid. Whether it's a big dime or big nickel, they like to have three safeties on the field, and we know that Spagnuolo, the defensive coordinator, likes to use multiple defensive backs in many different areas on defense.
With Thornhill out and Mike Edwards in, I'm going to guess that Cook takes the role of Thornhill last year, and Edwards takes the role of Cook last year. But, it could very well be the other way around. Edwards could get that starting position over Cook, which is why it's so important to see who lines up where in camps all offseason.
Either way, I think we see Bryan Cook take a big step forward this season. He will have more responsibility than ever and Steve Spagnuolo is going to trust him to do a lot of different things, whether it be to get in the box, cover wideouts, and possibly tight ends.
