Wanya Morris could be taking Lucas Niang's job along the Kansas City Chiefs' offensive line.
The defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs should be one of the better teams in the NFL once again, but they do have real issues in trenches heading into next season.
While the additions of Donavon Smith and Jawaan Taylor should help Kansas City solve its tackle issues, their third-round pick in Wanya Morris out of Oklahoma puts an immense amount of pressure on Lucas Niang being able to keep his job. Niang has played sparingly since being a third-round pick out of TCU in 2020. This includes him opting out of his rookie season as well.
There is a chance Niang could be cut if Morris beats him out for the crucial swing tackle spot.
Kansas City Chiefs: Lucas Niang could lose his job to rookie tackle Wanya Morris
Eventually, the Chiefs were going to have to address this. The idea behind drafting Niang so high in 2020 had everything to do with the tape he put out there back when the Horned Frogs took on the Ohio State Buckeyes. Niang was in charge of keeping Chase Young in check. That carried weight throughout the draft process, but it has been a frustrating last two years for Young in Washington.
With the Chiefs being a perennial top-four team under Andy Reid the entire time Niang has been in Kansas City, it wasn't like he was put into the most difficult situation to be had as a young NFL player. Up to this point, it hasn't worked out for him, so Brett Veach addressed one of Kansas City's biggest weaknesses accordingly. So how does the Morris draft pick factor into the equation?
While I don't particularly like what the Chiefs did in the 2023 NFL Draft, I do love the Morris pick, as this is my favorite selection that they made. Morris hails from my neck of the woods in nearby Gwinnett County. He starred at high school powerhouse Grayson before committing to play his college ball at Tennessee. After Jeremy Pruitt was fired, he transferred over to Oklahoma in 2021.
Although winning largely avoided him in college, as the Vols got better after he left and OU had its worst season in decades last year, Morris always had the upside of being a pretty good pro tackle prospect. He may not work out, but it is his turn to show Kansas City what he has got. Niang has had three years to prove his worth, and hasn't really done so. It's why his days could be numbered.
It doesn't have to be figured out now, but there are only so many roster spots to be had in the NFL.
