The Kansas City Chiefs are set to host UCLA RB/FB Carson Steele on a top-30 visit.
Steele told IndyStar reporter Joel Erickson he had an upcoming pre-draft visit with the Chiefs. This comes after he already took top-30 visits with a pair of AFC West rivals, the Chargers and Raiders. He also took part in the Indianapolis Colts local pro day earlier this week.
A star at Center Grove High School in Indiana, Steele started his college career at Ball State. As a member of the Cardinals, Steele had twelve career 100-yard rushing games in two combined seasons of play. He transferred to UCLA in 2023, recording 167 carries for 847 yards and six rushing touchdowns to go with 17 receptions for 163 yards and two receiving scores. All while playing through a sports hernia injury suffered at the beginning of the season in September.
How does UCLA RB/FB Carson Steele fit with the Chiefs?
While the 21-year-old played running back in college, his fit for the NFL might be a hybrid position. At his pro day at UCLA, Steele weighed in at just under 6-foot-1 and 228 pounds. He posted 28 repetitions of 225 on the bench press and an impressive 37.5-inch vertical jump, however, his 40-yard dash time came in over 4.7s. That's to say he might be a bit closer to Kyle Juszczyk as an athlete than Isiah Pacheco.
Now, the 2023 NFL season was the first in Andy Reid's entire 25 years as a head coach in the league that he didn't roster a traditional fullback. It was a departure from the norm for Big Red, but it didn't stop him from using split-back looks and misdirection with different players lined up in the backfield.
A move to add a player like Steele specifically for those types of plays would make a lot of sense from a play-design perspective. How about adding some T-Formation looks to their repertoire?
He can run out of the formation, but he can also catch some passes as well.
Steele is likely a Day 3 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, but he could certainly have an impactful role in Kansas City on the offensive side of the ball. He'd also be used as a multi-phase player on special teams for Dave Toub at the next level.
Other visits so far:
- Oregon State WR Anthony Gould
- Western Michigan DE Marshawn Kneeland
- Boston College OL Christian Mahogany
- UCF WR Javon Baker
- UNI DT Khristian Boyd
- Marshall RB Rasheen Ali
- BYU OT Kingsley Suamataia
- Ohio State DT Michael Hall Jr.
- Furman OL Jake Johanning
- Kansas State TE Ben Sinnott
- CFL CB Qwan'tez Stiggers
- Penn State OT Caedan Wallace (coming soon)
- Washington WR Jalen McMillan (coming soon)
- TCU S Millard Bradford (coming soon)
- Missouri OT Javon Foster (coming soon)
- Cincinnati DT Jowon Briggs (coming soon)
More must-reads: