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Chiefs sniffing around for offensive tackle help ahead of the 2024 NFL draft

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Charles Goldman | Last updated 4/18/24

The Green Bay Packers signed former Philadelphia Eagles first-round draft pick Andre Dillard on Thursday, but not before he took a visit with the Kansas City Chiefs.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, Dillard visited the Chiefs before making his free agency decision. This shouldn't come as a major surprise, given that Kansas City has around $20 million in cap space available and a need for competitive depth at the offensive tackle position.

Just this week, Andy Reid spoke about Wanya Morris and the left tackle position. He made it sound as if Morris wouldn't be given the starting job without significant improvement. At the very least, competition is coming at the tackle spot, be it through free agency, the 2024 NFL draft, or both.

Before signing with Green Bay, Dillard took a free agent visit to the #Chiefs, per source. Kansas City needs tackle help, which it could find in the draft. https://t.co/jrmSQlw6Mx
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) April 18, 2024

What offensive tackle options remain for the Chiefs in free agency?

A good fallback plan for the Chiefs would be to re-sign their starting left tackle from the 2023 NFL season, Donovan Smith. He remains a free agent and proved to be a serviceable option last year despite dealing with a neck injury that kept him out of five regular-season games.

There are a few other free agents out there that might make sense for the Chiefs. Former New York Jets first-round pick Mekhi Becton is just the type of reclamation project that Brett Veach has gone for in the past. He struggled mightily last season for the Jets and has had some health issues during his young career.

Conversely, if they wanted to go a low-risk, high-reward route, they could take a swing with former Green Bay Packers LT David Bakhtiari. He's managed to play in just 13 games since tearing his ACL late in the 2020 NFL season. If he's fully healthy, he could prove to be a steal.

Beyond that trio of players, it's pretty slim pickings for Kansas City. Most of them are likely to sign with teams after the 2024 NFL draft at this point. The Chiefs might not feel overly pressured into picking a position out of need, but it's hard to imagine a situation in which offensive tackle isn't addressed at some point in the draft.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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