Chiefs Make Big Splash At Offensive Tackle, Add Jawaan Taylor

Embed from Getty Images
The NFL’s legal tampering period opened up on Monday. For the Kansas City Chiefs, they immediately filled one of their top needs entering the offseason. Former Jacksonville Jaguars right tackle Jawaan Taylor is coming to Kansas City. This is a major splash for the Chiefs, given the pending free agents they had at offensive tackle, and the dominance that Taylor possesses.

The Chiefs have a new protector for Patrick Mahomes. #ChiefsKingdom #FPC #NFL #NFLTwitter pic.twitter.com/HTi2kMsnaM

— Full Press NFL (@FullPressNFL) March 13, 2023

It is reportedly a four-year deal worth $80 million, which includes $60 million guaranteed. According to Field Yates of ESPN, Jawaan Taylor receives an $18.9 million signing bonus. His base salary for 2023 is a measly $1.08 million. Of course, this deal will become official once the 2023 league year opens up on Wednesday afternoon.

Jawaan Taylor’s deal with the Chiefs is quite straightforward:

Signing bonus: $18.9M

2023 base salary: $1.08M
2023 workout bonus: $20K

2024-2026: annual base salary of $19.5M and annual workout bonus of $500K

He earns $20M in cash each year from KC.

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 13, 2023

How does Jawaan Taylor fit in with the Chiefs offense? Where could he align upfront? Plus, is Kansas City done adding veteran offensive tackles? Let’s kick it off.

Jawaan Taylor Presents A Perfect Schematic Fit With Chiefs

There are many reasons to be excited about adding Jawaan Taylor to the Chiefs offense. First and foremost, this is a player that is a perfect schematic fit for Kansas City. There is no question that Taylor boasts more athleticism than the duo of Orlando Brown Jr. and Andrew Wylie from the last two seasons. Simply put, that is an element that is so beneficial for a high-octane attack like Andy Reid‘s.

Elsewhere, Taylor has been able to improve as a pass blocker throughout the last few seasons. You have to love the balance and length that he displays on tape. On the flip side, Jawaan Taylor does a good job of staying square when mirroring opponents, while not overextending his arms if he does not have to. Of course, he will have to pass block a ton for the Chiefs. The new addition to Kansas City produced a pressure rate allowed of just 2.5 percent last season. As for the aforementioned Brown Jr. and Wylie, neither of them were below six percent at offensive tackle.

Beyond those traits, the hand technique of Jawaan Taylor was extremely noticeable on tape. There is an urgent pop in his hands to get ahead of pass rushers, so to speak. Meanwhile, Taylor looks to gain early leverage by keeping his arms locked in tight and inside of the necessary strike zone.

Left Or Right?

There appears to be multiple reports about where Jawaan Taylor may align on the Chiefs offensive line. Early indications displayed that he will be making the transition to left tackle in Kansas City. Given the contract that he signed for, that could make a lot of sense. You also have to think that his athletic upside and playing in a similar offensive scheme in Jacksonville makes this a smoother transition. Yet, Jawaan Taylor has played right tackle for pretty much his whole career, dating back to most of his college days at Florida.

If the Chiefs truly believe he can play left tackle and those reports end up being true, Kansas City officially closes the book on an Orlando Brown Jr. return. He is still available on the open market, as of this writing. Wylie followed Eric Bieniemy to the Washington Commanders, however.

The only thing stopping Jawaan Taylor from transitioning to left tackle is the possibility of future moves at offensive tackle. Could the Chiefs still sign another veteran blocker for cheap before the 2023 NFL Draft? Or, will Kansas City be players in the trade market?

Kansas City Still Adding A Veteran Offensive Tackle?

Embed from Getty Images
According to Aaron Wilson of local news in Houston, the Chiefs were reportedly looking into a possible trade with the Houston Texans for left tackle Laremy Tunsil. The possibility of this appeared to be ruled out after Kansas City signed Jawaan Taylor. But, that is not being completely ruled out, even if it is more of a longshot.

Say the Chiefs do not trade for Tunsil. Obviously, they could still land a stopgap option for the other offensive tackle spot on the open market. It is just a matter of making the transition of Jawaan Taylor to left tackle or keeping him in the position he has been at forever.

Despite those conflicting opinions and reports of what is out there, the Chiefs landed one of the best offensive tackles available in free agency. The mix of athleticism, instincts, growing pass blocking potential and hand technique of Jawaan Taylor is a perfect addition to protect Patrick Mahomes. Kansas City certainly did not hurt themselves with this early decision to add a blocker.

Be on the lookout for more FPC Chiefs articles and analysis throughout this week. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.