The Chiefs made a roster move on Friday, claiming former Jacksonville DE, Austen Lane. (Photo: Jaguars.com)

KCCD Editor: Elliot Dennis

The Chiefs have made their first move in weeks by claiming DE Austen Lane off waivers from the Jaguars on Friday. To free up a roster spot for Lane, the Chiefs released DT Daniel Muir, whom they signed in January.

Read on to hear my thoughts on the Lane addition.

Lane entered the league as a fifth-round selection (153rd overall) of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2010. In his 3-year career he has played in 28 games (17 starts) and has racked up 64 tackles (48 solo tackles), three sacks, and a forced fumble. Lane entered the league out of small school, Murray State, where he dominated. He finished with a school-record 29 sacks and 55 tackles for a loss.

At 6’6″, 265 lbs, Lane would be a good fit to add some depth at rush linebacker in the Chiefs 3-4 scheme. He has some competition, however, with Frank Zombo, Mike Catapono, and Edgar Jones on the current roster.

While Lane hasn’t been anywhere near the pass rusher he was in college during his time in the NFL, his run defense has been very good. His run defense grade in 2012 was rated as a +7.5 by PFF and was rated +7.8 overall. So if he’s to help the team, it will be his run-defending skills to do so.

Daniel Muir is a bit of a surprise cut, as the Chiefs just signed him in January. Muir has been a journeyman, but has been a part of the rotation with the Packers, Colts, and Jets. However, with the progression of Dontari Poe and Jerrell Powe this offseaon, a roster spot wouldn’t seem likely for Muir, even though I had him projected for one.

What will be the fate of borderline players such as Ricky Stanzi? (Photo: Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

KCCD Editor: Elliot Dennis

With the draft over and OTAs commencing, I thought it might be fun to do an early roster projection. Now, of course, this list will likely change as training camp and preseason games start, but here’s an early roster projection anyways.

OFFENSE

Quarterbacks

Alex Smith

Chase Daniel

Tyler Bray

There’s not much shock with this group. Alex Smith is entrenched as the starter and Chase Daniel was brought in and paid to be the #2 quarterback. I have Tyler Bray beating out Ricky Stanzi, however. If Stanzi couldn’t get on the field with the horrible QB play that was ahead of him last season, there’s little doubt he could even make this roster.

Running Backs

Jamaal Charles

Knile Davis

Cyrus Gray

Shaun Draughn

This is basically the same group as last season, just replace Peyton Hillis with Knile Davis. Jamaal Charles and Davis are no-brainers and Cyrus Gray and Shaun Draughn played well enough last year, there’s good enough reason to believe they’ll make the roster.

Fullbacks

Anthony Sherman

The Chiefs drafted Braden Wilson out of K-State in the 6th round of the draft, but they traded Javier Arenas for Sherman afterwards. Sherman is a more proven commodity, so he’ll likely be the starting fullback week 1. Look for Wilson on the practice squad, however.

Wide Receivers

Dwayne Bowe

Donnie Avery

Jonathan Baldwin

Dexter McCluster

Mardy Gilyard

Terrance Copper

This group is a little bit harder to determine. The top-4 (Bowe, Avery, Baldwin, McCluster) are locks but the last two are harder to determine. There are quite a few guys competing for those spots. I’m putting Copper in for his great special teams play, but I have Gilyard edging out Devin Wylie for the last spot based on OTAs thus far.

Tight Ends

Anthony Fasano

Travis Kelce

Tony Moeaki

This position is a fairly easy one to predict. The team signed Anthony Fasano in free agency and drafted rookie Travis Kelce atop the third round in this year’s draft. Moeaki has looked good in the past but injuries have slowed him down and haven’t let him participate in OTAs. UDFA rookie Demetrius Harris has impressed and might beat him out if he can’t stay healthy.

Offensive Tackles

Branden Albert

Eric Fisher

Donald Stephenson

The Chiefs offensive line is a very versatile one, so keeping only three tackles makes a lot of sense. Though Geoff Scwartz is listed as a guard, he can play at right tackle if need be. All three players listed as tackles here can play left tackle. This is a major strength for the Chiefs this season. These tackles are absolute locks to make the roster.

Offensive Guards

Jon Asamoah

Jeff Allen

Geoff Schwartz

Three more locks to the roster. Jon Asamoah is a rising star at the position, but the position battle between Jeff Allen and Geoff Schwartz will be fun to watch as we go through minicamps and training camp.

Offensive Centers

Rodney Hudson

Eric Kush

The Chiefs could choose to keep only one center but they spent a sixth round choice on Eric Kush and Andy Reid called him the “sleeper of the draft.” I have little doubts that Hudson and Kush will both make the roster.

CONTINUE TO DEFENSE

Eric Fisher is the centerpiece of the Chiefs 2013 NFL Draft class. (Photo: Yahoo Sports)

KCCD Editor: Jason Madson

After 3 days, the 2013 NFL Draft is over. The picks are made and most undrafted free agents have been scooped up or offered tryouts. The Chiefs selected eight players and brought in another 20+ undrafted free agents. Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid mentioned in the post draft press conference that he wanted to have a two-deep roster at the rookie only mini camp, which is coming up soon. They definitely went after free agents aggressively, almost bringing his want to reality. This draft will be remembered for three reasons: Eric Fisher over Luke Joeckel, keeping Branden Albert and the Chiefs not selecting a QB. Below are my thoughts and a very early grade on the 2013 NFL Draft.

Round 1 Eric Fisher

This is the offensive lineman that I preferred. He helps in the run game and holds his own in pass pro. The pick is significant because of the situation with Branden Albert. Many thought a trade was in the works, including myself. The trade never happened, so now the Chiefs have to figure out how to shuffle the line, just to keep the 10 million dollar man happy. Plugging Fisher in at right tackle, with Albert at left seems like the best solution. After the year, maybe Albert and the Chiefs reevaluate and it turns out similar to Dwayne Bowe. Regardless of what happens, the Chiefs are much better at the offensive tackle position than they were before the draft.

Round 3 Travis Kelce and Knile Davis

This round upset quite a few fans at first, but after doing some research, the worst I can see is that Davis was taken a round or two too early. It’s way too early to tell if any of these picks will work out or not, but Kelce is great value where they picked him. Comparisons can sometimes be a dangerous thing, but I’ve mostly seen Gronkowski and Shockey as Kelce comps. He plays with a violent temperament, blocks like his job is on the line and works underneath as well as deep routes. Reid has done all the research he can on Kelce too. Philly drafted the older Kelce brother a few years back, Travis visited the Eagles and his brother numerous times. Chiefs fans are going to love Kelce’s play and effort out on the field.

Knile Davis being selected in the late third was a bit of a head scratcher for most people. He’s coming off two subpar seasons. One in 2011 where he didn’t play the entire season due to injury and 2012 where his carries were cut short do to rumored issues with the coaching staff. When he’s on the field, his numbers are very impressive, offering over 5 yards per carry in his career and a decent number when catching the ball out of the backfield. He built like a linebacker and is as strong as a horse, but the injury concern will always be there. He’s been on the mend since high school. Knile was voted team captain twice in his Razorbacks career, if that means anything to you.   If Davis takes advantage of this opportunity, concentrates on football and performs as Jamaal’s backup, this is a solid pick. He could very well exceed these expectations too.

Round 4 Nico Johnson

Derrick Johnson, meet your new lead blocker, Nico Johnson. DJ hasn’t played with a guy next to him of this size or skill yet in his career. Nico will destroy blockers and stop running backs in their tracks. I really like this pick because Nico has experience being the strong side backer in the 3-4 at Bama. He kept CJ Mosely clean, just like he will do for DJ in Kansas City. Derrick should benefit from this selection the most. Andy Reid also mentioned how well Nico blitzes. Derrick Johnson mentioned recently that he would be blitzing more in 2013. Nico only adds to the blitzing options. Nico does have some drawbacks though. He is poor versus the pass, but Reid said that they will work with him in this area.

Round 5 Sanders Commings

The SEC chants continue into round four for the Chiefs. Needing help in the back end of the secondary, looking at you Kendrick Lewis, the Chiefs go with Commings. His off  field concerns had to be the only reason that he slipped this far. Built like a rock at 6′ and weighing around 220 lbs, Commings can press bigger WR and even TE. Sanders can man up with TE, something the Chiefs missed the previous few years. Commings can be moved around, not really fitting at one area in the secondary, but contribute to all of them. Some question his effort versus the run. He was also a standout baseball player, being drafted as a center fielder to MLB. This is a skill that I like in him too, the ability to play center field for the Chiefs.

Round 6 Eric Kush and Braden Wilson

Talk about a couple of out of nowhere picks, at least in the fans eyes. The only reason I knew about Kush was because of an interview I heard with Lance Zierlein. He mentioned that Kush was his sleeper of the draft and got around on reach blocks faster than he’s seen. With Hudson on the mend, this is good to see, the Chiefs bringing in guys to compete. This also might mean that Lilja will remain retired. Braden Wilson, the KState fullback, is a throwback player. He is hard nosed, with no flair to his game. He’s a great blocker, in the mold of another Andy Reid fullback, Owen Schmitt. According to Reid, Wilson will be moved around from backfield to TE and mentioned Braden as the best blocking fullback in the draft. Wilson grew up a Chiefs fan.

Round 7 Mike Catapano

Seems like the perfect ending to this draft, selecting Mike Catapano. He is a try hard, stronger than most, limited athlete. With his size and strength combo, could see him lining up at 5 technique and outside linebacker, depending on the situation. Reid mentioned him in the Tamba Hali role. I’m not sure if he was comparing Mike to Tamba when he was drafted or Tamba now. Either way it’s a solid pick to end this draft.

UDFA Signings

Tyler Bray is the biggest get in this group. He was considered a high draft pick during the season, based off his talent. Interviews during the pre-draft process caused him to slide out of the draft. He landed in a great spot with Andy Reid and Doug Pederson willing to mold him. The question is, will he take to the coaching and change his attitude?

As usual, a lot of local talents were brought in to compete. Brad Madison from Mizzou and Bradley McDougald, Toben Opurum and Dayne Crist from Kansas. I have liked McDougald all thru this process and give him a real shot to get a camp invite at the least.

Darryl Stonum is a WR from Baylor. He transferred from Michigan after some legal troubles. With the Chiefs needs at WR, he could be in a good spot to make an impression at camp too.

Most of the group that is brought in will be shown the door after the rookie mini-camp ends, but it is still an honor to even be invited.

Draft Grade B+

The Chiefs had targets on their board and attacked. It’s that simple. The word “Reach” is being thrown around an awful lot with many of the Chiefs picks, but without seeing their board, how do we know? What is that even based off of, what Mel Kiper or Mike Mayock tell us? John Dorsey helped build the Packers into a powerhouse and Andy Reid had a near dynasty in Philly. The team added football players that are skilled, physical and play with the type of relentless attitude we haven’t seen in KC for a while. This draft, along with the offseason additions, are the foundations for this franchise to build upon.

Here we will track every UDFA signing the Chiefs make. Every signing here is considered unofficial until the team officially announces the signing.

Signed:

Brad Madison, DE, Missouri

Rob Lohr, DT, Vanderbilt

Demetrius Harris, TE (?), Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Bradley McDougald, S, Kansas

Rico Richardson, WR, Jackson State

Josh Martin, DE/OLB, Columbia

TJ Knowles, TE, Sacramento State

A.J. Hawkins, OL, Ole Miss

C.J. Jones, DB Texas A&M

Jordan Roberts, RB, Charleston

Toben Opurum, OLB, Kansas

Darryl Stonum, WR, Baylor

Kaderius Lacey, RB, Alabama A&M

E.J. Epperson, DE, Ole Miss

Darin Drakeford, LB, Maryland

Raheem Stanley, DT, New Haven

Colin Kelly, OT, Oregon State

Will Matte, C, Indiana

TJ Fatinikun, DE, Toledo

Tyler Bray, QB, Tennessee

Frankie Hammond, WR, Florida

Adam Nelson, LS, Villanova

Drew Terrell, WR, Stanford

Tryout:

Dayne Crist, QB, Kansas

The Chiefs use their last selection on an Ivy League defensive end. (Photo: Beverly Schaefer)

KCCD Editor: Elliot Dennis

With the first selection in round seven, the 207th overall, the Kansas City Chiefs select Mike Catapano, defensive end out of Princeton.

Read on to hear my thoughts on the Catapano selection.

This is a pick with some definite upside. Catapano is from Princeton, an Ivy league school. He’s 6’3″, 271 lbs, so he can beef up just a bit and become a 5-technique defensive end in the Chiefs 3-4 defense or he can slim just a bit and become an outside linebacker. It all depends what the coaching staff believes as his best fit. He can rush the passer wherever the Chiefs put him. Again, another highly versatile guy the team is adding in the trenches.

Catapano dominated against Ivy League competition in 2012, racking up 12 sacks with 15.5 tackles for a loss. He’s not an extremely gifted athlete, but he’s got a nonstop motor and he’s an extremely hard working player that will likely stick on the roster. He impressed scouts at the East-West Shrine Game back in January.

Grade: B+

UPDATE: Andy Reid has said that Catapano will play OLB.

The Chiefs select a local fullback with their last sixth round pick. (Photo: Orlin Wagner, AP)

KCCD Editor: Elliot Dennis

With the 36th selection in round six, the 204th selection overall, the Kansas City Chiefs select Braden Wilson, fullback out of Kansas State.

Read on to hear my thoughts on the Wilson selection.

This is a solid pick. The Chiefs didn’t have a true fullback on their roster and now they do.

Braden Wilson is a crushing blocker the Chiefs have been missing. He’s a part of why Kansas State’s running game has been so successful the past couple of years. He’s a huge guy, standing at 6’4″, 251 lbs. He’s even shown some speed by running a 4.78 40-yard dash at the combine, so he could contribute in the running game some.

A lot of local fans are most likely very satisfied with the Wilson selection and they should be. Wilson should become the starting fullback for Kansas City and can open up holes for Jamaal Charles and new Chief, Knile Davis, for years to come.

Grade: B+