Why UDFAs Are Critical For the Chiefs

Randle and his regulators with the Minnesota Vikings were one of the most feared defensive lines of the 90s.

The history of the NFL has been painted by men who never heard their names called in the draft, men who have played a critical role in championship efforts, locker room unity, and men who have gone on to perpetuate the game in a positive way to the world and to their communities.

Randle and his regulators with the Minnesota Vikings were one of the most feared defensive lines of the 90s.

In the same way, Chris Jones commands his defense line as they look to wreak havoc on the opposition. With several departures in free agency, the Chiefs may need to use UDFA's to fill out the roster, especially at critical positions, with the thought that they'll help Jones and company win another Lombardi.

In 2024, undrafted free agents Carson Steele, Nikko Remigio, and Mike Caliendo made up some of the UDFA contributors on the Chiefs.

The value that undrafted free agents provide greatly outweighs their contract. They're the hard workers, energy guys. When they step on the field, make no mistake, it's clear that they earned that opportunity as teams look for every reason not to give them it.

When UDFA's play good, it's infectious. Why? It's the energy they bring. Everyone buys into it, and when you have the top stars playing with the same desire that the players who are scratching and crawling for their opportunities do, that creates a unit of ferocious beasts that are hard to defeat.

Undrafted free agents do not play in the NFL because they love football; they do it because they love their families as much as they love football, and football provides. At every turn, something is trying to take their meal, and they will not have food taken from their family's plate. When first-round players adopt that attitude, goodness.

When they don't. Let's not go down that road. UDFA players are critical to winning efforts, providing things that analytics are not able to measure.

For teams like the Chiefs that manage a salary cap with a high-paid quarterback like Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones, JaWaan Taylor, and others, undrafted free agents can be the edge that could take Kansas City back to the Super Bowl for a fourth straight year.

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