Chiefs Could Make Delayed Offseason Run at 6-Year NFL Sack Artist

Getty Defensive end Dawuane Smoot with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2019.

The Kansas City Chiefs were linked to former Jacksonville Jaguars edge rusher Dawuane Smoot once again — but there’s a catch this time.

The Athletic’s KC media member Nate Taylor brought up the potential free agent target during a “to-do list” article on April 14. One of the sub-headers read: “Add another veteran defensive lineman.” That’s where Smoot came in.

“Defensive end Dawuane Smoot, who tore an Achilles in Week 16, could be a candidate to join the Chiefs toward the end of training camp,” Taylor informed. “Prior to his injury, Smoot generated five sacks and 12 quarterback hits in a rotational role.”

Smoot has actually been relatively consistent since 2019, with somewhere between five and six sacks each season in Jacksonville over that span — although Achilles injuries are particularly challenging on edge rushers because they impact explosiveness and get-off. Smoot’s most productive campaign all-around came in 2021.

Why Nate Taylor Believes Chiefs Should Add Another Veteran DL

Taylor also explained why he feels the defensive line is still an area of need that could use an experienced player to help fix it.

“The Chiefs roster no longer includes [Frank] Clark, defensive tackle Khalen Saunders, defensive end Carlos Dunlap and defensive tackle Brandon Williams, four players who combined for 1,849 snaps last season,” Taylor stated. “Much of those snaps will go to [Charles] Omenihu and the rookie D-lineman the Chiefs acquire through the draft. Maybe defensive ends Malik Herring and Joshua Kaindoh show significant progress in their development as well. And the Chiefs do have serviceable defensive tackles in Byron Cowart, Phil Hoskins and Tershawn Wharton, who is returning from a torn ACL in his left knee.”

Then came the proverbial “but.” He continued: “But adding another veteran to the group, perhaps just before training camp — which is when Dunlap signed last year — should strengthen the team’s depth.”

Smoot or Dunlap both make sense as that late signing in 2023. One is returning from injury, and will have to rebuild his free agency stock throughout the summer, while the other is 34 years old with experience inside the system.

“The Chiefs could bring back Dunlap for his 14th season,” Taylor agreed, with a quote from general manager Brett Veach to hammer home the point. “It’s a game of attrition,” Veach said at the combine. “You can sit there and think that you’re deep at a position. I remember a few years ago [in 2020] we thought we were really deep at defensive line. Within the first three or four weeks, we lost three of them.”

In other words, you can never have enough depth — an age-old philosophy around the NFL.

Potential Price Tag of Dawuane Smoot or Carlos Dunlap

Whether it’s Smoot, Dunlap or someone else, a veteran signing of this nature likely wouldn’t cost much.

Dunlap joined Kansas City for $3 million in guarantees last year according to Over the Cap, and that number will probably drop even lower in 2023 because of his age. Then there’s Smoot, who will likely agree to a one-year prove it deal after his Achilles injury.

The former third-round pick will enter his age-28 campaign this season, and last reupped with the Jags on a two-year, $10 million contract in 2021. Smoot ended up earning $9.93 million out of the $10M deal.

Depending on his market, he might cost a little more than Dunlap this year based on his potential, but Smoot will probably have a hard time finding an offer better than what the Chiefs spent on Dunlap last summer. One year, $2-3 million guaranteed sounds about right, although Smoot could be offered more incentives that boost that number a bit higher if he exceeds expectations.

We’ll have to wait and see if Veach makes another delayed signing like this late in the offseason.