KC trade puts Edwards front and center

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —Ron Edwards said he needs to work on repetition, and he didn't break from his training Thursday. He kept saying it. Question after question, he had the same thing on his mind.

"Just reps and reps and reps," said Edwards, the Chiefs' nose tackle. "Just the repetition, it always helps. Doing the same things again and again makes me better."

The Chiefs gambled this week. They traded backup nose tackle Tank Tyler on Monday to the Carolina Panthers for a fifth-round pick in next year's NFL draft. That left Edwards as not only the team's undisputed starter but, for a while anyway, the team's only true nose tackle as well.

Then the Chiefs signed veteran Kenny Smith, and the defensive depth chart didn't look naked anymore. But considering that Smith hasn't played in an NFL game since 2003, it became clear this week that the Chiefs are either wagering their fortunes on Edwards, or they trust him enough to play well and stay healthy for 10 more games.

Edwards, 30, is a soft-spoken player. He's a worker. He's one of those who says little but works relentlessly. That's what the Chiefs like about him. When coach Todd Haley asked Edwards, like nearly every other player, to drop weight during the offseason, the big man did it. Edwards is as strong as he looks, quicker than you'd think, and skilled enough to give the Chiefs one reliable nose tackle.

But is that really enough?

"We feel comfortable with where we're at," Haley said Thursday.

The Chiefs might feel more comfortable if they knew that Edwards would avoid injuries for more than two months. Edwards is the starter at the defense's most shallow position. And just in case, defensive ends Glenn Dorsey and Wallace Gilberry have spent practice time working at nose tackle.

Neither of those players possesses Edwards' 6-foot-3, 315-pound frame, but at least they have some experience as versatile linemen who now can shift inside in a pinch.

"We've got a plan if something were to happen," Haley said. "Ron is working hard on his conditioning. All those things factor into durability — along with a little bit of luck."