The Kansas City Chiefs are gearing up for their preseason finale against the Seattle Seahawks, but they also have an eye turned towards their upcoming roster cuts. In just a few days, the Chiefs’ roster will be trimmed all the way down to 53 players, and in some ways, the front office is getting ahead of the action.
Kansas City recently reinforced its offensive line depth by swinging a trade with the New York Giants for Joshua Ezeudu. His arrival, though, meant that the team had to move on from another player in a corresponding move, and on Wednesday afternoon, that player was revealed to be veteran offensive lineman Kellen Diesch.
Chiefs Release Offensive Lineman Kellen Diesch
That’s the move in anticipation of completing the trade for Giants OL Joshua Ezeudu.
Diesch starred during the final two years of his collegiate career with the Arizona State Sun Devils, but he still didn’t hear his name called in the 2022 NFL Draft. To this point, Diesch has not played a single snap in a regular-season game, but he has bounced around the league quite a bit to say the least.
After signing with the Chiefs earlier this month, they became the seventh team Diesch has spent time with in the pros. When he hasn’t been with an NFL team, Diesch has also spent time in the United Football League, as he’s suited up for four different organizations there, too. Simply put, Diesch has been a man on the move in recent years.
Considering how Diesch signed with Kansas City in August, his odds of making the 53-man roster were always going to be long. As it turns out, he won’t even get to spend a week with the team, as he is going to be released in order to make way for Ezeudu once the team’s trade with New York gets finalized.
“Chiefs have waived OT Kellen Diesch, per source. He wasn’t at practice on Wednesday,” Matt Derrick of Chiefs Digest reported in a post on X. “That’s the move in anticipation of completing the trade for Giants OL Joshua Ezeudu.”
Chiefs Start to Trim Down Their Offensive Line Depth Chart
GettyThe Chiefs have released veteran offensive lineman Kellen Diesch after trading for Joshua Ezeudu from the Giants
A third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Ezeudu hasn’t exactly been great to begin his career, but unlike Diesch, he actually has experience playing in the pros. Ezeudu didn’t play at all last season, but prior to that, he appeared in 33 games over his first three seasons with the Giants, 10 of which were starts. He will have a better shot at making an impact for K.C. than Diesch did.
Diesch certainly won’t be the only player at this spot who gets shown the exit door, as more cuts are coming in the near future. The front office can get a head start on their work, though, largely because they had to now that Ezeudu is in town. For the time being, the focus remains on the team’s upcoming clash with the Seahawks, but once that wraps up, a frenzy of roster cuts will be made.
Chiefs Release Veteran Offensive Lineman After Giants Trade