Not sure if this was posted above, but Brian Baldinger basically came out and said:

a) He was surprised that the Chiefs gave up on Sumaitaia after 2 games; and

b) He was surprised at the signing of Jaylon Moore to protect Mahomes' blindside. He wasn't very good against elite pass rushers.

Chiefs need a LT in the draft bad.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/Chiefs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Chiefs</a> have they solved the left side of the offensive line issues? We will know in the opening month of September. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BaldysBreakdowns?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BaldysBreakdowns</a> <a href="https://t.co/sYxJpQ4F3d">pic.twitter.com/sYxJpQ4F3d</a></p>&mdash; Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/BaldyNFL/status/1909764924571582570?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 9, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

He MIGHT have been. Perhaps even PROBABLY.

What you're missing is:

1) the history of players with this injury returning at their prior ability level is terrible, and

2) It's not a good LT draft. So being the best of a mediocre group doesn't make him a great prospect, even IF he was a lock to return to his previous ability level. Which, as we've covered, he is NOT.

There is no slam dunk LT at all in this draft, and Simmons is a huge risk. I would say that Conerly, Ersery, or maybe even Grant are better bets to be starting level LT's. And those aren't guarantees by any stretch. Most likely not.

I want to draft the next...

Joe Thomas

"He wasnt very good against elite pass rushers"

This feels like a baseless claim. Not much bad tape at all from him this year, regardless of who he was going up against, the problem is simply that it's a small sample size.

I agree with Baldy that it's too soon to give up on Kingsley. I understand them deciding that they needed to remove him after two games, as they're trying to win a Super Bowl and it became apparent that he was going to be a liability. I don't think that means they've given up entirely, just that he was going to need some time. I think playing him at G was just getting him some game reps and get him used to the speed and physicality of the NFL without putting him out on the island.

I see no reason to give up on what was a project from day one at this time.

Moore was pretty good in a small sample size. His deal is two years, and you could get out as early as one if you want. You can afford that if Kingsley or another draft pick beats him out.

I agree it's just that all indications are that they've moved on from him as the LTOTF, and they made that decision so quickly and so final that I'm just going to assume there's a good reason why.

Because his lateral footwork ****ing sucks. Ain't much of a mystery, and that's mitigated quite a bit playing inside.

Go back and watch Bonitto make him his bitch over and over and over, and it becomes very clear why Reid has apparently thrown his hands up and moved him inside. Sucks, because he really should've gotten at the very least a redshirt season given how raw he was but that toothpaste is out of the tube now. Just hope he's a much better LG than LT.

I still don’t agree and believe he would be the top LT taken if not for his knee. Regardless of who he played he still showed dominance and the traits a top LT would have.

I guess another question I have is for the people who almost with certainty claim that there is no way Simmons can heal and play at the same level prior to his injury…..Then why the hell would Veach even have him in for a look? Doesn’t this mean that it’s at least possible he can? I mean OT is still a huge need and can’t be a high draft pick that is a bust. Plus they have seen a current OT deal with the same injury in Niang……BUT they ae still bringing in Simmons for a look? Shouldn’t this tell us desk GMs that there is a lot more to Simmons and the talent he has AND the confidence in him being able to play at his previous level/skills? Otherwise why bother?

Yes. Simmons has great traits. The anti Simmons crowd is right about the risk though. I’ll be curious to watch how this plays out. I’m more desperate than they are for a developmental tackle and even an emergency tackle if Moore is injured. I’m concerned that Moore is not very good. Did anyone watch Moore against top competition? In the film I watched, he looked ok, not a superior athlete and limited reach. But he seemed like he had good instincts and technique. I’d still like to have some competition at LT. Simmons traits and his projection if healthy is superior to both Kingsley and Wanya. I agree that the sample size this year is limited and against weaker competition. Simmons traits are elite and he has improved every year. It’s a risky move and his eval will be super important. I hope the docs know what they are doing.

Niang had a different injury. It was a hip thing.

*OH you mean the one in the NFL that basically ended his career. Yeah, I'm not sure that works for your argument.

Look, I get that you really want Simmons to be the answer, and we all want an answer, but this is nowhere near a sure bet.

You’re aware that teams use their top 30 visits to sow disinformation sometimes, right?

Bring in guys for visits they don’t really want, don’t bring in guys for visits they do really want?

Sometimes a top 30 visit is gamesmanship.

The Chiefs don't NEED a left tackle in the draft, especially if it means taking an inferior player just because he plays that position. This isn't Madden and good teams don't draft like that.

They bring in guys every year that they don't plan on drafting. It's called gamesmanship.

1) I disagree 10-fold with DJ on whether or not Paris Johnson Jr is a good LT. He is, in my opinion, in the top half of LTs in the league and ascending. He played year one at RT and last year at LT. He's going to be really ****ing good.

2) I can also tell you, as an Ohio State fan, that Josh Simmons is nowhere near as good as a college LT as Paris Johnson Jr was. It's not even in the same ballpark. Simmons is solid and a top-20 or so player, but he's not a top-10 pick in any draft.

3) I have said before, and will reiterate, that I would not touch Simmons before pick 63. Sure, do your diligence and figure out what you can, but you won't really know anything about whether or not he'll make it until he puts the pads on and has to drive other 300+ pound men on that leg repeatedly. I don't trust how much testing they can subject him to right now versus that actual on-field evaluation.

Given that it's a tendon, there is blood flow, and there is no doubt the injury is fully healed at this point. He isn't going to fail from a purely "medical" perspective. The question is with physiology. Can he perform a full knee extension with the same amount of power he did before and without it causing recurring issues of swelling and tendinitis?

This is about as bad of an injury as any football player can sustain, and offensive line is one of the absolute worst positions to sustain it at. The data is HORRENDOUS when it comes to this, and I've posted a study on it in the draft forum. He is, without a doubt, an absolute shot in the dark and I just cannot bring myself to champion that in round 1.

Plenty of other teams are also checking him out right now. That doesn't mean any of them are comfortable with him in round 1, and it doesn't mean the Chiefs are. Hell, the Chiefs burn most of their top-30 visits on UDFAs. If they draft one from that crop, that's about max, but they usually bring in a couple UDFAs from it. I wouldn't read much into that.

Are yall completing each others sentences now?

Nice post crow. You’ve partially won me over. In what ways is Paris that much better than Simmons? I’m curious. Because it can’t athletic ability?

I genuinely wonder who as a LT could fall to 31 that is significantly better or has more upside than Kingsley.

Putting Kingsley at LG this year is telling everyone, he will not be a LT for the Chiefs. That sucks but evidently our coaching staff and Reid think he will be a starting guard right now. He has a successful year there, that’s his position.

Is there any solid info on Kingsley playing left guard besides the fact he played in the game against Denver

I know Veach has mentioned it a few times, and quoted Andy Heck as saying he feels really good about the move for Kingsley to LG.

Paris has elite athleticism, is much longer, was an Academic All-American, and was a hard worker and leader of that team.

He needed strength work (most college tackles need it, I don't know why people continue to be surprised by that) and hand placement work. He had the acumen and work ethic to do it.

Simmons is not as athletic, long, or smart, and they are about even from a technique and strength standpoint. I haven't heard the same work ethic from Simmons.

Johnson was a top 10 pick for a reason. He's about the closest things to Pace we've ever had in terms of size and athleticism but Pace was just stronger. I don't think he'll ever be Pace but he at least has a chance.


Side note...
Man that 1995 & 1996 Ohio State roster... It was just stacked. Not winning a National Championship burns... All these guys made the NFL and I'm sure I missed a couple at first glance.

DE Mike Vrabel
OT Orlando Pace
TE Ricky Dudley
WR Terry Glenn
WR David Boston
RB Eddie George
RB Nick Goings
S Rob Kelly
S Damon Moore
CB Antoine Winfield
CB Shawn Springs
CB Central McClellion
CB Ahmed Plummer
CB Ty Howard
QB Bobby Hoying
QB Joe Germaine
LB Greg Bellisari
P Brent Bartholomew
FB Nicky Sualua
RB Joe Montgomery
DT Winfield Garnett
WR Jimmy Redmond

It isn't rocket surgery. Signing Jaylon Moore, using 10+ top 30 visits on OT alone, and Veach outright saying they like moving him to inside.

Imo, Kingsley has zero upside at LT. That ship has sailed. In KC, He'll make it at Guard or nowhere.

Nope. It's all speculation.

I want some possible trade scenarios from you regarding the LT position

Ok, I've dropped my Simmons infatuation. You guys are speaking too much truth. I just hoped so hard that he was a perfect fit but for the need for additional time to heal. With Moore in tow, the team could give it to him -- it looked like an ideal situation.

But if I fill one hand with wishes and the other with shit I'm confident which will fill first. So I guess I'm on the Conerly bandwagon now. Regardless, I think we have to keep taking swings until we find the guy to protect Patrick's blindside for the remainder of his career.

Zero upside? Zero?

You mean we didn't draft a guy in the 2nd round because he had physical traits conducive to being a starting LT in the NFL? In reality he was some Mike Caliendo JAG at the tackle position?

The NFL draft is nothing but wishes, man. Even when we took Mahomes. We had confidence. But we don't ever KNOW.

The way to guard against that is to throw multiple lines in the water. Which is what the Chiefs are doing. And they'll probably do it again in the draft. It just might not be in the 1st round, and I hope people understand that the development of the entire rest of your team can't be put on pause just because there's a hole at LT.

I remember the talking heads all saying Mahomes would take a lot of work to make him an NFL quality QB....that goes to show you just how hit and miss the so called experts really are.

Nobody.

Nobody is more ready than Kingsley would be in year two.

And all this "he's a guard now" talk is a bunch of unsubstantiated nonsense. It makes perfect sense to get him NFL snaps in a meaningless game and take the pressure of being on an island out of the equation. That doesn't mean it's now the long-term plan.

He was always a project, and that means 'not ready day one'. It's something fans have a real problem grasping.

Now, maybe-hell, even LIKELY he's just never a starting level OT. Slightly more likely he can play RT. But that's called a late second round pick's general success rate more than anything specific to HIS abilities.

No it isn't LMAO. They benched him mid game twice, Veach more or less outright said it, they signed Jaylon Moore to play the position for at least two seasons, and they're doing homework on all the OTs that will be realistic options at the back of the first and beyond.

If you refuse to believe that something that looks, waddles, swims, and quacks like a duck is a duck, that's your prerogative, but quite literally every action the team has taken would lead you to believe they've shifted the long term goal for Suamataia.

I’ve said it before but if I’m converting anybody to guard, it’s Morris, not Kingsley.

Kingsley was a way bigger project than people thought which is why he would have fallen to the 3rd rd if we didn’t pick him.

A guy with elite size/speed/strength doesn’t fall to the 3rd rd if he doesn’t have enormous flaws. And those massive flaws were evident very quickly.

The first rd tackles and Ersery are not as big of projects as Kingsley.

Kingsley played well, at guard, against the Bronco's defense that ain't no joke and they were fighting for a playoff spot. I believe that sold the staff that he could be a guard and made it a little easier to trade Thuney. They will draft a tackle this again! I'm sure there are some kind of tests to see how strong the knee/patella tendon are. If they liked what they saw and he gets close they will go after Simmons. Who knows Simmons could be a smoke screen gamesmanship ;) and there is someone they like better.

He will be right tackle after next season. He played well at right tackle in the Bronco's game.

He didn’t belong out there so early and they killed his confidence. His body language after he gave up a pressure or sack was as bad as I’ve seen. I was a huge fan of the pick, but seeing him get beat and having no fight in him after the play ended, was unfortunate.

Made me wonder if Kingsley sat himself. Maybe had talks with coaches that he didn’t feel he could compete with those guys.

A slight change has been made on Simmons Instagram account, and that's Tua is being followed now.

Yes. Zero as far as upside goes at LT... He needs to play in a phone booth. Hopefully he is decent there and has upside.

I agree, BUT didn't Morris show fairly well playing RT?

I'm not buying that he is "enormously" flawed

Baltimores defense is no joke, and he looked good against them

Against Denver he just ran up against an elite type edge who had his rookie number

There simply isn't any conclusive evidence that he is destined for guard and nothing more... they'd be absolutely nuts to draft him as a LT, and completely give up on him after one bad showing

I don’t trust Jaylon Moore. Extremely small sample size, played in a protected offense that pass rushers constantly feared the run first and doesn’t have a great physical profile.
This could easily go haywire and **** up our entire season again.

Josh Simmons is a top 15 pick if he doesn’t get hurt. He’s got the skills necessary to play the position and this is not a great class. There is no doubt he’s on our draft board. The big question is whether or not Burkholder has cleared his injury to stay on our draft board.

Conerly may be that guy too. I still think he’s got much better hands and footwork than Kingsley but needs to get stronger, which is the easiest thing for a player to get better at.

Everybody saying there are no stars like Joe Alt in this draft makes no sense to me. The Chiefs will never be able to get a star OT bc those guys go top 10 and we pick last.

This draft has some guys who can be decent starting tackles. Simmons could be if he’s cleared, Conerly could be and IMO Ersery could absolutely be a decent starting RT.

The Chiefs have been stranded in the desert at LT for the last 2 years. A decent tackle is worth its weight in gold compared to any other position in this draft.

If Andy and Veach feel that Simmons or Conerly are starting quality LT’s at even a decent level, they should go get them the same way they did for Worthy. Trade up if they get in range.

We had probably the worst LT situation in the league last year. An even decent LT changes the offense.

Only 11 days to go, and we'll all - mostly - know the truth of where we stand at LT

I get there are a bunch of DL players who could be great.

Everyone should force themselves to rewatch that Super Bowl and then say we can wait on a LT.

I don't trust ANY of them.

Not Moore, or Kingsley, or Conerly, or Simmons, Ersery, or Grant.

Should we take one, and throw numbers at it? Yeah, probably.

Should we spend extra draft capital to go up and get one?

Nope.

Moore raises the floor enough to be better than last season at a minimum. Maybe considerably better.

We've got to get multiple quality players in every draft now in order to stay on top. Picking last all of the time makes this really difficult.

I can guarantee with 100 percent certainty that the starting left tackle in the Super Bowl will NOT be manning that position under any circumstances this season.

100 percent.

We signed a guy.

There isn't a day one starter in this draft.

We'll draft another guy that can MAYBE grow into it to go with the other two guys we already drafted.

It'll work out.

Valid points.

Important to also remember that some tackle prospects of the past who were deemed average (Dion Dawkins), turned into really good pros.
You always draft the talent before anything else and trust your coaches to develop them.
Connery would be an excellent pick but I'd be fine with Simmons, too. These two kids in particular have the traits and talent to turn into really good pros.

Wait on and/or move up for WHO?

There isn't a single safe bet in this draft

guys, it all comes down to this:

If Veach and Reid think there's a LT in this draft, they'll take him. If they don't, they won't.
Maybe they like Conerly. Maybe they think Simmons will return to form. Maybe they think they can coach up Ersery or Grant.

We don't know.

But if they don't, it won't be because they're not concerned.

I think Moore is as good, or maybe a little better that Orlando Brown was, and Pat had his best year with that level of “good enough”.

He’s the story term answer and if we draft someone, or an in house option improves so that they win the battle for the position, even better.

I think Simmons provides the kind of upside at the position that’s worth a first and if that means we spend a pick next year to move up a couple spots to get in front of a team like the Bills to get him, I’m ok with that…depending on how the board falls.

That upside is worth the risk.

If he returns to form, his attributes would open up a bunch of the offense they ran when Fisher was here and Pat trusted the line and he could go through progressions better and not have to rush throws.

Add in the aspect that our current WRs are far better than that group and a guy like Simmons (if, if, if…) solidified the LT spot with stud play…gonna be a lot of fireworks.

No thanks, Im not watching that again.

We need a LT to protect Patrick and help our run game.

The odds he returns to form are awful, though.

We’ve spent the past two weeks discussing this and trying to find an NFL player who actually did fully return to form after this injury.

We have yet to name one. Because said player doesn’t exist.

The most likely outcome for Simmons is he is less than he was. And we’re not talking 55/45 here. More like 90/10.

This idea that a first round pick will protect Pat for "the next ten years" or whatever is a dream and not necessarily reality. Things happen. Injuries, contracts, etc. We all thought Tyreek was a Chief for life. Same with Sneed. Those are just two examples. Unless you're going to pay a LT the way you pay Pat, 10 years is a dream.

The entire line got manhandled. I guess we should draft a center in round 1 by that logic.

Good teams don't draft like this. Honing in one position of weakness and drafting for it against all other options is how bad teams operate.

If Carl could see us classless and deranged fans now demanding that the Chiefs draft a 1st round fatty

This makes sense and maybe makes some more comfortable with Simmons?

“Yes, Simmons' right leg, his "power leg" as a left tackle, was not directly impacted by the injury, which is a positive factor in his recovery. This is because a left tackle uses their right leg for a more stable and powerful stance, and the injury occurred on his left knee. While a patellar tendon tear is still a serious injury with a longer recovery time than an ACL tear, Simmons' unaffected right leg could aid his rehabilitation and return to full strength.” According to Sports Injury Central.

This makes sense to me. Now it might mean RT is not an option and limits him to LT only?

You absolutely need that left leg whenever anyone tries to come inside on you. And if it's not sound, teams will just find the weakness and exploit it.

Nah -- doesn't mean much to me.

The gap between truly elite and not even rosterable is so much smaller than what anyone seems to realize. When fully healthy he wasn't an elite prospect -- there's no way a guy playing 'on one leg' with the baseline he had when he was at full gallop would be a starter in the NFL.

The left leg absolutely matters a ton.

I mean it’s not like they cut his left leg off! I’m just pointing out that the more important leg for a LT will still be full strength regardless of how his other knee heals.

Also….Id still disagree with you and say he WAS looked at as an elite prospect before the injury.

Link please? I’d like to read that article. My interest in Simmons has declined with some of the information I’ve learned from CP. Crow mentioned that Paris Johnson was a superior prospect to Simmons. And he’s right. Paris is a mountain. Paris is 6’6” & 315 lbs with 36” arms and can move. He was also strong coming out. Hard to get by Paris in college.

https://youtu.be/9mS0-bD2GHw

With my uneducated eye, Simmons athleticism looks different to me. He just moves more like a skill player. Again, I get it. His medical may make him a 2nd rounder but his movement skill is just different. Take a look. One the 2nd video at about 37 seconds in the video, you see Simmons release for a screen. Paris can’t move like that. But Paris is a bigger LT that’s hard to get around. Simmons movement and athleticism is just different and rare. The dbs and LBs have a hard time getting away from him on those screen plays. That’s just not normal.

https://youtu.be/QqIBUM-OJCE

https://youtu.be/_DhEuUfB6no

Compare that movement skill and balance to Ersery.

https://youtu.be/GTZrmmSZRxs

So the fact it's his athleticism and movement that set him apart ... and the fact the injury he sustained is one that has sapped those things for every other dude that have recovered from them...

That's what gives me pause, for sure.

Paris and Ersery move like big strong LTs.....Simmons moves like a DE in a 3-4 Scheme. Neither is better than the other, just different. Even though at his pro day Simmons did 33 bench reps! That would have tied for most reps at combine this year. So Strong and Fast?

Also:

https://sicscore.com/news/ohio-state...is-draft-stock


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Despite Josh Simmons claiming he’s ahead of schedule, <a href="https://twitter.com/ProFootballDoc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ProFootballDoc</a> believes the Ohio State OT should sit out his Pro Day as he continues recovering from the torn patellar tendon he suffered in October. Watch his full breakdown...<br><br>Watch PFD Podcast: <a href="https://t.co/d8lK2lG9xX">https://t.co/d8lK2lG9xX</a> <a href="https://t.co/b7SxdXiBCq">pic.twitter.com/b7SxdXiBCq</a></p>&mdash; Sports Injury Central (@SICscore) <a href="https://twitter.com/SICscore/status/1898067110422605897?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_EHG-gpa2Ko?si=vKpvuqBGchVwtQEK" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

In his NONE power Leg!

I'm not sure what you're even trying to say.

Are you trying to suggest that for a LT, the left leg is less important than the right leg?

Because... I believe most would disagree with you.

He's not sure either.

He read it somewhere and it matched his preconceived opinion so now he's going to lean into it really heavily.

This isn't a situation where you have a pitchers glove arm vs. his throwing arm here. It's more like a hitters drive leg vs. landing leg. One may be slightly less critical but both of them absolutely matter a pretty damn fair bit.

HAHA I love how you talk about "matched his preconceived opinion"!

I simply went looking for medical doctors reports on Simmons and his injury. The first one to pop up talked about how Left Tackles right leg is more important than their left leg.

I'm not trying to do anything but post information I found.

Ok why? I actually never thought about it until I read what a sports doctor said and it makes sense to me that a LEFT tackle would favor his right leg for power and pushing off more so than his left leg. Makes perfect sense. Thus why I said that fact could mean it could limit him to only the left side and not a right tackle. Shrug

We lose one Super Bowl and spend weeks arguing about 300 + pound men’s knee tendons

Exactly it will come down to do they trust Kingsley as future tackle or current swing tackle and are they planning on releasing Taylor in 26 to save 20 million probably the difference in if we draft a 1st round tackle or a third round maybe future right tackle

Both are important. Losing power and explosiveness in either leg is a problem.

A LT’s outside (left) leg is still important, even if the right leg is more important for anchoring.

You’ve got to be able to move and get into your stance, and the left leg is going to be moving more as you angle to cut off the arc of the pass rush. It’s going to come down quick and be ready quick to take initial impact.

I think you will find that some coaches or technique guys teach think the right leg is more important, and others that the left, but again, all will say both are important.

For an offense that wants its OTs to bail into vertical sets, having a compromised outer leg could make it tough to take the set and get your anchor and balance before impact.

Getting back to the OP just giving up multiple picks for a prospect is no good unless he's an obvious + starter. Let's not throw multiple picks against the wall hoping to hit pay dirt. :shake:

If you push off with your right leg...what leg you gonna land on? And if you weigh 300+ lbs, how important do you think it will be that said leg be able to absorb that energy, kick that leg back out and then absorb it again?

And again, as previously noted, if you have a guy who's burst off his right leg is notably more explosive than his left, teams WILL take advantage of that by simply setting up wide and beating him across his face. Or doing a simple push/pull to get him off balance and then when he tries to reset, explode through his chest.

So when your kick slide is hard off your right leg to push you out wide and then the DE comes inside, what leg is going to have to drive you back to the right?

No, it doesn't make sense.

If his left leg is compromised he's just as ****ed as if his right leg was.

Well hell, nevermind -- Duncan said this already. Carry on lads.

This thread gives me a headache

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Your pre-conceived notion is that 'Simmons is elite, and we should draft him!'

And if some kid in his mom's basement that has a podcast has something positive to say about that, you're going to take that as evidence for your case, and disregard everything else.

If Simmons IS truly elite NOW, he won't get anywhere near #31, so the whole argument is irrelevant.

This whole argument that his left leg isn't important is the most ridiculous thing I think I've ever seen argued here, and that's saying something.

Personally, I think we should draft two-legged tackles, but that's just me.

Tackles are important in the game of football.

Behind the QB, yes, the most important positions on the field.

In all honesty, I believe the selection will be a passrusher because a LT as the 1st round pick has become so loud by the media .