Getty Kansas City Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen.
This offseason, the Kansas City Chiefs parted ways with veteran safety Dan Sorensen, who signed a one-year deal with the New Orleans Saints after spending eight years in Kansas City.
The Saints signed Sorensen to shore up their safety room along with New York Jets safety Marcus Maye, who they signed to a three-year, $28.5 million deal. However, New Orleans then signed former Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu to a three-year deal in May. The Saints likely didn’t expect Mathieu to be available months later when they decided to sign both Sorensen and Maye, which now puts them in a predicament come training camp in late July.
That’s why one analyst believes Sorensen could be on the chopping block before the 2022 regular season.
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Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report named seven NFL veterans that could find themselves on the roster bubble in training camps and named Sorensen as one of those veterans.
“[Sorensen] could still wind up making the team as a special teams ace, but he’s a liability in coverage,” Ballentine wrote on July 12. “Last season, he gave up a passer rating of 132.9 which was even worse than the 100.7 he surrendered in 2020.”
Maye’s 2021 season came to end when he was placed on injured reserve last November due to a torn Achilles. So, his gradual return to full action this summer could help Sorensen remain on the roster for at least part of the 2022 regular season in New Orleans. But as Ballentine put it, “the 32-year-old will have to earn his keep during training camp.”
Bills Detail Key Offseason Move to Beat Chiefs
The Buffalo Bills might have built a powerhouse of a franchise over the last couple of years, but they haven’t been powerful enough to beat the Kansas City Chiefs. That was evident in the AFC Divisional Round earlier this year when the Chiefs beat the Bills in overtime 42-36.
A large part of the reason for the shootout was due to Buffalo’s inability to get to Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who completed 75% of his passes and had zero turnovers in that game. With that in mind, Buffalo went and signed a high-profile free agent this offseason that they believe is the key to finally beating Kansas City:
Von Miller.
Miller, 33, signed a six-year deal with the Bills this offseason that will pay him $51 million in guarantees, per Over The Cap. That’s a large amount of money for a pass rusher well into his 30s. However, Dan Pompei of The Athletic revealed the discussion Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane had with head coach Sean McDermott, defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, and defensive line coach Eric Washington regarding the addition of Miller.
“Beane spoke of how the Bills fell short of their goal last season mainly because they couldn’t get to Patrick Mahomes in the divisional playoff loss to the Chiefs,” Pompei wrote on July 7. “Miller could change that. Beane also told Miller he would bring value to a young locker room because he knows how to win Super Bowls. McDermott stressed that he wanted Miller to be himself and nothing else. Frazier and Washington spoke of using him in matchups on both sides of the line.”
Bills Have Been Upgrading, but So Have Chiefs
Although adding Miller will no doubt be an upgrade to Buffalo’s defensive line, the Chiefs have been preparing for more fierce pass rushers since last offseason. After adding Orlando Brown Jr., Joe Thuney, Creed Humphrey, and Trey Smith in 2021, Kansas City drafted Darian Kinnard this year, and he is projected to slot into the starting right tackle role. So, the Chiefs’ offensive line will be in an even better position to handle elite pass rushers this upcoming season.
Only time will tell how well the entire offensive line will gel together, especially now that Khalil Mack, Chandler Jones, and Randy Gregory have been added to the AFC West. But based on what we saw from the unit last season, the arrow is trending upwards in terms of their ability to protect Mahomes.
Darian Kinnard is a strong addition to the #Chiefs offensive line. He’s a talented football player that has proven to be durable and physical in his four seasons at the University of Kentucky. I am excited that we got him in the 5th RD.
