The end of the NFL preseason means the regular season is almost here, but the work isn’t over for the Kansas City Chiefs and the other 31 franchises as they evaluate the tape and decide who stays and who goes til they reach their initial 53-man roster. While veterans can focus on the upcoming season, this time of year is very anxiety-inducing for younger players, hoping their hard work during training camp and preseason is enough to warrant one of the available openings on the roster.
After finishing the preseason with a win at home over the Cleveland Browns, head coach Andy Reid spoke to the media during his regular post-game conference and broke down the process, which leads up to cutting the roster down to 53 players.
“[General Manager] Brett [Veach] will get with his guys tomorrow [Sunday] morning, and then the coaches will grade the tape and get that in for their final, the coach’s final evaluation on the guys playing.” Reid explained, “And then Brett will shake it all up and come out with the best group that we think can help us here, and yeah, it’s always – this is the toughest day,” he continued. “When you have to make the cuts because these guys have busted their tails through all the OTAs and then through training camp, then they all can’t be here, unfortunately.”
Deciding on who will fill the first 40 spots is usually straightforward. But determining who will be the last 13 players to finish out the roster can be challenging. As Brett Veach explains, special teams and players who are versatile play a prominent role in figuring out who that last handful of guys that make the team will be.
“Once we get down to the final cuts, it’s position versatility and special teams that come into play,” Veach explained to Ari Wolf and Trent Green during the broadcast of Saturday’s game. “Looking for guys at certain positions is one thing, but we really are committed to keeping the best players and letting that play out.”
Last season, the Chiefs featured a long list of first-year players who contributed in some important roles that led to a championship run. This year, Veach recognizes the opportunity to put more young players in a position to have some early success.
“We learned last year that we’re in a position now where we’re going to rely heavily on these young guys to come in and help us,” he noted. “It’s a long season. Last year, we had a group of talented players come in and get better and better and better. By the end of the season in the AFC Championship and Super Bowl, those guys [were] making big plays. We just hope our coaching staff does a tremendous job — like they do — and keeps getting these guys better and better.”
Kansas City must trim their 90-man roster to 53 by 3 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, August 29.
