Kansas City Chiefs GM explains thinking behind toughest 53-man roster decisions
Many of the Kansas City Chiefs’ surprise cuts from their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday made more sense 24 hours later — only, though, after general manager Brett Veach had to hold his breath.
Released players like receiver Daurice Fountain and defensive tackle Danny Shelton were not signed by other NFL teams and then subsequently were added to the Chiefs practice squad Wednesday. Then, among those with less than four years of service time, the Chiefs lost just one player to a waiver claim: defensive tackle Matt Dickerson, who was picked up by the Atlanta Falcons.
Veach spoke Wednesday about it being essential to understand NFL rule dynamics as it relates to roster trim-downs. The goal is to look big picture to keep as much talent on the 53-man roster and practice squad as possible.
Judging by Wednesday’s final result, then, the maneuvering mostly worked. The guys the Chiefs cut — as nervous as Veach might have been about exposing them to 31 other NFL teams — mostly came back to KC’s practice squad while adding to the overall roster depth.
“It’s never easy, and you kind of go back and forth, and you’re trying to work the system to get all these players,” Veach said. “We had a lot of good guys that we cut that we thought were 53-man caliber roster players, and a little bit of it is just calculating how the league works as a whole.”
On-field results played an important role in some keep-or-cut decisions too.
One of the Chiefs’ unexpected moves was keeping four running backs along with fullback Michael Burton. That meant Ronald Jones, who ran most of the last few weeks with the third- and fourth-team offense, earned his way late.
Veach confirmed that fact Wednesday, saying Jones impressed with his eight-carry, 43-yard effort in the team’s preseason finale against Green Bay.
“I think that last preseason game was a great reminder of how valuable Ronald Jones can be,” Veach said. “And I think we can all agree that he ran with a lot of authority in between the tackles, and we saw flashes of that at training camp.”
Linebacker Darius Harris also stood out against the Packers, making tackles on three straight plays before securing a spot on the Chiefs’ roster.
“Like Ronald, when he had that opportunity presented to himself that last preseason game, he just took it and ran with it,” Veach said. “Certainly, we were excited about that development.”
Quarterback Shane Buechele helped his cause during the final audition as well. He completed 11 of 17 passes for 166 yards with two touchdowns.
“I think at the end of the day, we always tell the guys that once we get them here, we like to put the decision in their hands,” Veach said. “And Shane was one of those guys that we felt played well and earned a spot on this roster.”
Keeping an extra running back and quarterback — for now — meant the team needed to trim at another offensive position.
That was receiver at this point, where the Chiefs kept only five while initially releasing Fountain.
Again, though, this appeared to be strategic. As important as Fountain is to KC in a special teams role, he might be the type of player that other teams would value less than the Chiefs. That meant an educated gamble from Veach and staff that Fountain would make it to the team’s practice squad.
That’s how it ended up playing out, with Veach saying he had a good conversation with Fountain on Wednesday.
“It’ll just be a matter of time before we’re gonna need him, and he’ll be on the team at some point,” Veach said. “It’s such a long season, so I think it worked out in that regard.”
The most significant two takeaways from Veach speaking Wednesday were persistent throughout his 21-minute conversation with reporters:
1. The coaches and front office valued the last preseason game;
2. The Chiefs were thoughtful with their final decisions while thinking about the types of players that other teams might try to acquire.
“We went back and forth,” Veach said. “Sometimes, there is that game within the game.“
