The Kansas City Chiefs have reached the pinnacle of the sport again.
On Sunday, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII, 38-35.
It’s not a surprising ending – the Chiefs were among the favorites to win the Super Bowl before the season began – but it is a friendly reminder of the work the Chiefs’ front office and coaching staff have done over the years. The Chiefs are a well-oiled machine and could provide a college-level course on team building and sustainability.
Despite losing Tyreek Hill in the off-season, the Chiefs didn’t miss a step. In the playoffs, when they needed to call on Chad Henne after a Patrick Mahomes injury, Andy Reid and the offense hardly faltered. It was a textbook season for the Chiefs from week 1 to the final game of the year.
Teams will ultimately attempt to copy the work the Chiefs have done. While they can’t replicate the talent of Mahomes or Kelce, there are still plenty of lessons to be learned from the Chiefs’ approach to team building.
Focus on the offensive line
After losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV, the Kansas City Chiefs had enough of the offensive line musical chairs.
In the following off-season, the Chiefs remade their offensive line through any means necessary. They started the off-season trading for offensive tackle Orlando Brown and signing offensive guard Joe Thuney to a contract. In the NFL Draft, they addressed the position even more by drafting three linemen – Creed Humphrey, Trey Smith, and Lucas Niang.
Four of the five started for the Chiefs last night, including Humphrey who blossomed into one of the league’s best interior linemen. The results were written in stone, as the Chiefs allowed no sacks against the Eagles.
The Vikings have already begun building the offensive line, even if it’s incomplete. Christian Darrisaw is quickly becoming one of the best left tackles in the NFL, and right guard Ed Ingram showed promise in his rookie season. If the Vikings keep building the offensive line, their offense can raise its already high ceiling.
Promote coaches from within
Losing position coaches to promotions is a common thing for good football teams. The Chiefs aren’t different, losing their fair share of assistants to other organizations.
Heading into this season, the Chiefs lost quarterbacks coach Mike Kafka to the New York Giants but quickly transitioned to hire former Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy, who worked with Reid before. Cornerbacks coach Sam Madison also left, choosing to join the Miami Dolphins. Reid transitioned by promoting defensive assistant Donald D’Alesio to a larger role.
The year before, the Chiefs promoted pass game analyst Joe Bleymaier to wide receivers coach. Bleymaier replaced running backs coach Deland McCullough, who left to take a job in the college ranks.
This approach is all too common for the Chiefs. When they lose head coaches, they often choose to promote from within. Doing so creates a sense of continuity for players, who don’t need to undergo drastic shifts when coaches leave.
Value linebackers, especially in the draft
Linebacker Nick Bolton made one of the most important plays of the night for the Chiefs, recovering a Jalen Hurts fumble and returning it for a touchdown. Linebacker Willie Gay led the team with two tackles for loss.
Bolton and Gay are home-grown products for the Chiefs. The Chiefs selected Gay in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft, and they followed that up by selecting Bolton in the second round of the next draft.
Approaching the position through the draft doesn’t stop there for the Chiefs, either. In the third round of last year’s draft, the Chiefs selected Leo Chenal. Chenal was mainly a backup for the Chiefs, but the rookie still earned a sack in the Super Bowl.
As football has progressed, teams have begun to value linebackers less, creating a ripple effect on how fans approach the game. The fact is that linebackers still matter and can be a critical piece to a team’s defense. Selecting them through the draft allows NFL teams to maximize team control because draft picks often receive multiple years of team control before entering free agency.
The Vikings may need to revamp their linebacker room in the off-season, and selecting one through the draft can allow them to approach other positions through free agency.
Value depth over stars at wide receiver
The Kansas City Chiefs probably wanted to keep Tyreek Hill, but his contract demands proved to be too high for the Chiefs. Instead, they traded Hill to the Miami Dolphins for multiple draft picks, including a first-round selection.
The Chiefs spent that off-season finding different ways to fill the hole that Hill left in the wide receiver room. They signed JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marques Valdes-Scantling through free agency and drafted Skyy Moore in the second round, adding three new pieces to try to replace one.
During the season, the Chiefs traded a third-round pick to the New York Giants for Kadarius Toney. Although Toney didn’t light the world on fire with the Chiefs, his touchdown and punt return were turning points in the Super Bowl.
It’s unclear how the Vikings will approach the wide receiver position in the off-season, but Adam Thielen is a free agent this season. K.J. Osborn will also hit free agency the following season, meaning the Vikings could choose to get creative with their receiver room.
Treat the secondary similarly to the wide receiver position
The Kansas City Chiefs saw an even bigger remodel in the secondary, losing cornerback Charvarius Ward and safety Tyrann Mathieu in free agency.
Losing two starters in the secondary could derail a team, but the Chiefs pivoted. They signed veteran safety Justin Reid to replace Mathieu and drafted five defensive backs with their ten total picks.
Four of those picks played big roles for the Chiefs, including cornerback Trent McDuffie who became the team’s starting slot cornerback. Safety Bryan Cook was the team’s third safety, while seventh-round pick Jaylen Watson made a handful of big plays for the Chiefs, including an interception in the AFC Championship Game.
Pairing those draft picks with safety Juan Thornhill and cornerback L’Jarius Sneed – both former draft picks of the Chiefs – allowed them to treat the secondary as a “weakest-link system.” If a piece of their secondary struggled or was unavailable, the Chiefs had plenty of depth to replace them and pivot.
The Vikings’ secondary will likely undergo a similar remodel this season, meaning they can directly copy from the Chiefs’ approach. They won’t be able to select the same amount of defensive backs in the draft, but they can still make it their mission to find depth at the position.
