Kansas City Chiefs CB Bashaud Breeland is participating in the virtual offseason program despite his recent arrest in South Carolina and an unrelated four-game suspension for a violation of the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, which Breeland intends to appeal.
Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo confirmed Breeland’s participation in team meetings during a conference call with the media on Tuesday. Spagnuolo was asked specifically if he had a timeline for Breeland and when he would be ready to be a full participant.
“I do not,” Spagnuolo said. “And I don’t know where it even is game-wise and all that. But listen Breezy [Bashaud Breeland] has been in the meetings with us. He’s been very engaged and he’s done a heck of a job. So again, that’s a player that we have that’s in his second year in the system. I’m glad that we got him back. Just like you’re talking about, I think we’ll let that play out. I know Coach Reid has addressed it and I’ll kind of stand on whatever he had to say. From my regard, I’m just glad that we got him back.”
Sometimes teams will ask players to stay away from the team following incidents. See Tyreek Hill during the 2019 offseason as an example. It seems clear that the team wants to keep Breeland focused on football and away from any potential trouble that might find him. This also signals that Breeland has the trust of the team. Andy Reid previously spoke on Breeland’s arrest, saying the team would, “let it play out with the law enforcement side of things and evaluate it from there.”
As a first-year player under Spagnuolo, Breeland quickly established himself as one of the most reliable cornerbacks in the Chiefs’ secondary. He started 15 games for Kansas City in 2019, notching two interceptions and eight passes defended. He’d go on to start in the Super Bowl, recording an interception off of 49ers QB Jimmy Garapolo.
[vertical-gallery id=66928]