Getty Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson during the 2022-23 AFC Championship Game.
The Kansas City Chiefs kicked off padded practices on July 28, so The Athletic’s Nate Taylor thought it felt like a good time to give a little rundown of early “risers” and “fallers” at training camp.
The top name on the “fallers” side was a bit surprising: second-year cornerback Jaylen Watson. After an unexpected rookie breakout, the seventh-round prospect was instrumental in the Chiefs winning the Super Bowl last year — but he’s not off to the best start in 2023 according to Taylor.
“[Nazeeh] Johnson’s ascension appears to have disrupted Watson’s repetitions the most,” the KC media member noted. “All of Watson’s reps in Wednesday’s practice came with the second-team defense, a surprise since he entered camp in position to compete for the final starting spot alongside [Trent] McDuffie and L’Jarius Sneed.”
Taylor added that “after Monday’s practice, [defensive coordinator Steve] Spagnuolo gave a sharp critique of one of his second-year cornerbacks not named McDuffie or Johnson.” He quoted Spags next, relaying: “I had to remind one of them — and I won’t say who — that he was going back to his rookie habits instead of where he eventually got to.”
Taylor made it clear that Spagnuolo was referring to either Watson or fellow second-year CB Joshua Williams, but he wasn’t sure which one.
Chiefs CB Nazeeh Johnson Pushing Jaylen Watson for Snaps as Early Training Camp ‘Riser’
Speaking of Johnson, the other 2022 seventh-round cornerback was one of Taylor’s top “risers” over the beginning stages of camp.
“One of the minor subplots that has developed early in camp is that Johnson, a seventh-round pick from last year, is getting plenty of reps with the first-team defense,” Taylor wrote. “A year ago, the Chiefs weren’t sure if Johnson would best fit Spagnuolo’s system as a safety or a cornerback. But Johnson has played corner exclusively so far in camp. His recovery and timing for when to disrupt a pass have been critical to his success.”
The reporter also detailed a play where Johnson “did an effective job” covering wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling along with safety Justin Reid — who ended up getting credit for the pass defense.
“Johnson’s two best reps came Monday as he created a pass breakup while covering [Justyn] Ross,” Taylor concluded, “one of which was a deep pass from backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert.”
Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo Will Play the Hot Hand When It Comes to CB Room
Outside of Sneed and McDuffie, it feels like Spagnuolo is very comfortable playing the hot hand at the cornerback position. That’s what he did with Watson and Williams in 2022, and perhaps Johnson or standout rookie Nic Jones will enter that rotation in 2023.
When you have this type of youth and talent at one position, it makes it easy to mix and match. At the same time, it can be difficult to determine which prospect to use in which moment.
Either way, it’s a great problem to have and the credit goes to general manager Brett Veach and his staff. The Chiefs have totally turned around this secondary in a short period of time, and they’ve done it with late-round picks that have developed into first- and second-year starters.
Jones could be the next in a recent surge of Kansas City cornerbacks. The rookie has been all over the ball this spring and summer, and he’s already intercepted Patrick Mahomes II — which, considering his Hall of Fame resume, is an accomplishment in itself.
To be fair, Watson recorded an interception on Mahomes during the same practice as Jones. This CB battle should be very fun to watch as the summer continues on.