{"id":81879,"date":"2020-03-09T06:34:41","date_gmt":"2020-03-09T10:34:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprofootball.com\/?p=81879"},"modified":"2020-03-09T06:43:12","modified_gmt":"2020-03-09T10:43:12","slug":"kansas-city-chiefs-draft-running-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2020\/03\/09\/kansas-city-chiefs-draft-running-back\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the Kansas City Chiefs Should Not Draft A Running Back Early"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions, but now is no time to live in the past. The NFL Draft is just a few short months away, and several analysts around the country expect the Chiefs to invest one of their early picks in a running back. While there are several talented runners in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Chiefs are better off ignoring the need and drafting other positions. Running backs simply aren\u2019t important enough to justify an early selection, and Andy Reid<\/a><\/strong> has a history of turning just about anyone into a successful running back.<\/p>\n

NFL Draft: Taking A Running Back Early A Bad Choice for Kansas City Chiefs<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Invest in Defense<\/h3>\n

Patrick Mahomes<\/a><\/strong> and the offense (deservedly) get most of the praise for the Super Bowl run, but it wouldn\u2019t have been possible without the defense. The unit was surprisingly effective for the majority of the season, despite a relative lack of talent in the secondary. You can\u2019t bank on the unit playing above the sum of its parts for a second straight season and Kansas City should do everything they can to improve their defensive talent.<\/p>\n

The 2020 cornerback class has a clear CB1 in Jeffrey Okudah<\/strong><\/a>, but the rest of the class is completely up in the air. Considering the confusion on the board, there is a realistic chance that the Chiefs end up with someone like C.J. Henderson<\/strong>, A.J. Terrell, Jeff Gladney<\/a><\/strong>, or Kristian Fulton<\/strong>. Grabbing a player like this would immediately improve Kansas City\u2019s coverage unit, and recent data studies<\/a> show that coverage is the most important part of building a defense.<\/p>\n

Even if all those cornerbacks are off the board when the Chiefs are on the clock, there should be plenty of good linebackers available. Isaiah Simmons<\/strong><\/a> is going to be a top-10 pick, but guys like Kenneth Murray<\/strong> or Patrick Queen<\/strong> have a good chance of being around at 32. No matter who the Chiefs pick, they\u2019ll have more of an impact than any possible running back.<\/p>\n

Running Backs Don\u2019t Matter – Don’t Draft Them Early<\/h3>\n

Recent analytics studies have proven that running backs simply do not move the needle in today\u2019s NFL. Passing is more efficient than rushing, and you don\u2019t need to run the ball<\/a> in order to effectively use play action. Based on all measurable data, successful teams should be doing everything they can to build around the passing game.<\/p>\n

Even if you feel that the running game is more important than data can measure, the actual running back doesn\u2019t have much to do with the actual success of the rushing attack. In order for a run to be successful, you need to have strong blocking up front and a smart playcaller. Without that, it\u2019s hard for any running play to work out. The running back market is currently saturated with players capable of reading a rushing lane and following blocks, so investing a top resource in a replaceable position like that just doesn\u2019t make sense.<\/p>\n

If anyone should know about the replaceability of the position, it\u2019s the Chiefs. Back in 2018, Kansas City released star running back Kareem Hunt<\/a><\/strong> after video surfaced of him kicking a woman at a casino. With Hunt out of the picture, Kansas City turned to Damien Williams<\/a><\/strong>, an unremarkable talent that couldn\u2019t even make it on the Miami Dolphins. Despite the obvious drop off in talent, Williams was still able to do just about everything that Hunt could. Even in the passing game, most of the production came from Reid\u2019s scheme<\/a> rather than the talent of the running back.<\/p>\n

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And no – it does not seem to matter which Chiefs RB is doing the catching pic.twitter.com\/LeFdaeToLG<\/a><\/p>\n

— Ethan Douglas (@EthanCDouglas) August 22, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n