The Kansas City Chiefs have very few open starting positions for the 2020 NFL season, returning 20-of-22 starters from Super Bowl LIV. The one position on offense where the Chiefs are lacking a starter is the left guard position. The starter during the Super Bowl, Stefen Wisniewski, is now playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers after departing in free agency.
Kansas City still has two players on the roster who previously were starters at left guard in Andrew Wylie and Martinas Rankin. Both players dealt with injuries that had them sidelined during the 2019 season, but they should be ready to go in 2020. Another option is veteran free agent Mike Remmers, who has played all over the offensive line during his career but most recently at the right tackle position.
Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski recently suggested that Chiefs rookie offensive lineman Lucas Niang could be a surprise starter for Kansas City in 2020. He recalled our report on what general manager Brett Veach had to say about Niang following the 2020 NFL Draft — that he’ll have a chance to compete at the guard position right away despite playing tackle in college. Niang isn’t going to crack the starting lineup at tackle without a significant injury to either Eric Fisher or Mitchell Schwartz.
Our friends over at Draft Wire recently named Niang the biggest steal of the Chiefs’ 2020 draft class. As a left tackle at TCU, the 6-6 and 315-pound Niang started 27 games for the Bullfrogs, never allowing a single sack during his career. That’s right, no sacks in over 1,000 pass-blocking snaps. It’s incredibly impressive when you consider the fact that he fought through a hip injury in 2019, which ultimately ended his season early.
Niang will have an opportunity to come in and compete at guard during the upcoming training camp for the Chiefs. What will that look like exactly, though? Veach anticipates Niang initially taking first or second-team repetitions at guard and third-team repetitions at tackle. Ultimately, it will be up to the coaching staff to decide where Niang fits during the course of training camp and if he’ll be ready for a starting job as soon as the season opener.
What do you think, Chiefs Kingdom? Could Niang be the opening day starter at left guard? Be sure to let us know your thoughts on Facebook, Twitter and the Chiefs Wire forums.
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