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By
Nate Taylor Aug 27, 2020
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On Saturday, the Chiefs will have their last
semi-unusual dress rehearsal. The team will welcome a maximum of 5,000 fans
into Arrowhead Stadium for the team’s second open practice for season-ticket
holders.
The Chiefs will use
Saturday’s practice kind of how they operate during a normal exhibition game.
With no preseason games amid the coronavirus pandemic, coach Andy Reid has felt
that every repetition for his players in this year’s training camp has been
precious. The Chiefs are a veteran team, and the coaches are likely to keep as
many such players on their opening-night roster since the usual long shots on
the 80-man roster, the undrafted free agents, haven’t been able to prove
themselves in a game setting.
“We have to make decisions
off of practice,” said Dave Toub, the Chiefs’ special-teams coordinator. “We
meet every night as a (coaching) staff and we evaluate each guy and put grades
on them. Everybody hears what each guy says, so we know where everybody
stands.”
Since the Chiefs play in the
NFL’s first game this season — as the league’s reigning champions — the team is
expected to have its cutdown day to a 53-man roster a few days sooner than the
league-mandated time of 3 p.m. CT on Sept. 5.
As we detailed in our updated roster projection on Aug. 13 (before the
Chiefs’ padded practices), some players have had impressive performances in
camp to elevate their odds of being on the active roster next month. On the
flip side, some players have struggled in camp or haven’t made as big of an
impact as they would’ve hoped.
Below are 14 players whose
stock is either ascending or dipping for the Chiefs entering this weekend.
Ben Niemann,
LB
“Sexy” is not the best word
to describe Niemann’s play or abilities. But Niemann,
a third-year veteran, does just about everything right. He’s a good tackler and
a better blitzer than people realize, plays zone coverage pretty well, can be
trusted on special teams and has shown to have the best hands among the
linebackers in catching interceptions. Earlier in camp, Reid said the biggest
improvement in Niemann was his increased strength.
“I’ve got
to agree with Coach,” linebackers assistant Matt House said Thursday. “Strength
and then also just the confidence. Last year, as he developed a bigger and
bigger role, he grew more confident. This year, being in the second year doing
similar things, his confidence has improved.”
