The Kansas City Chiefs are out to improve their roster during the course of the 2022 NFL offseason, making additions on offense, defense and special teams. They’ll also look to retain some of their own players, with 24 slated for unrestricted free agency in a few short weeks. One player who was extremely valuable for Kansas City in 2021 was fifth-year offensive lineman Andrew Wylie.
An undrafted free agent out of Eastern Michigan in 2017, Wylie made stops with three NFL teams before finding his home with the Chiefs at the end of the 2017 NFL season. He’s since gone on to start games at left guard, right guard and most recently right tackle for Kansas City.
While Lucas Niang started nine games at right tackle for the Chiefs early in the season, Wylie filled in for him twice due to injuries, starting a total of 10 games if you include the playoffs. He replaced Niang in Week 9 and started the next four consecutive games for Kansas City. He’d fill in for Niang again in Week 16 due to COVID-19. Wylie would continue to play in place of Niang in Week 17 after the 2020 opt-out suffered a season-ending patellar tendon rupture.
Wylie’s performance this season was much-improved compared to his Super Bowl LV performance at the right tackle position. He faced some notable pass-rushers, like his former Eastern Michigan teammate Maxx Crosby, and limited their success on the right side of the line. According to Pro Football Focus, Wylie allowed just four sacks and 29 pressures on 527 snaps played at right tackle. He also finished the season with the fourth-highest run-block grade among Chiefs offensive linemen, including a better grade than Orlando Brown Jr. did at left tackle.
Wylie was the Chiefs’ top earner in performance-based pay in 2020 and he’ll likely be up there again in 2021. He was a restricted free agent last offseason and received an original round tender, earning $2.133M during the 2021 NFL season. This time around, he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent.
The free agent market isn’t flush with offensive line talent, but I tend to believe that Wylie’s best option will be to remain in Kansas City. Niang’s injury puts him out of the equation until mid-season at the earliest, which means Wylie could have the fast track to starting at right tackle again. Prince Tega Wanogho and Roderick Johnson are the only two players at the tackle position currently under contract besides Niang.
There’s little doubt that Wylie’s ability to plug in at three different positions makes him the team’s most valuable backup lineman. If the Chiefs don’t re-sign Wylie they’ll need to find a right tackle in free agency or the draft, and that might not be so easy. It also creates another hole for Brett Veach and the staff to fill, which feels like bad business.
