How the Chiefs will handle their backfield with Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the mix
The luxury of a Super Bowl roster with minimal turnover arrived late last month, with the Chiefs sticking to their best-player-available mantra on the NFL Draft’s opening night. They didn’t classify first-round pick Clyde Edwards-Helaire as filling a need.
But a want?
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach and coach Andy Reid have gushed about their new running back from LSU, illuminating why he can play an immediate role and be involved in one of the league’s top offense.
How big of a role?
How involved?
That’s hard to evaluate as the effects of the coronavirus pandemic prevent on-field workouts and evaluation. But even with starter Damien Williams returning — after scoring six touchdowns in the playoffs — the Chiefs aren’t planning on having Edwards-Helaire sit and wait.
“He’s just gonna be a piece of the puzzle,” Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy said of Edwards-Helaire, before complimenting the job Williams has done in Kansas City and mentioning Darwin Thompson and free agent signing DeAndre Washington. “We have a unique situation where he can come in and have an opportunity to learn from a collective group. But also, we want to make sure we’re utilizing him the right way and making sure that he’s mentally prepared to go when it’s time to go.”
The Chiefs suddenly have a crowded mix at a position in which they were thin at times last season. Edwards-Helaire, they believe, provides unique talent. He’s just 5-7, but he ran for 1,414 yards and 16 touchdowns for national-champion LSU. And he added 55 catches. The film proves his shiftiness and ability to make people miss.
“I think the kid is just a special kid,” Bieniemy said. “You’ve seen some of the things that he’s done on tape, as far as running the ball, having the ability to get outside in the open field and make some plays as a receiver. You can create matchups with him. He’s one of those ideal kids that fit into what we do.”
For more than the offense. Perhaps.
The Chiefs expect their rookies to be special teams contributors. Remember Kareem Hunt scooping up a blocked punt in a preseason game?
Edwards-Helaire isn’t likely to evade that responsibility — at least not yet. He’s already had video meetings with special teams coordinator Dave Toub.
“We’re going to find out if he can tackle,” Toub said. “We’ve talked a couple of times virtually. He’s never done it, but he’s looking forward to it.”
That’s a secondary role.
The primary job remains in the backfield. Just how often he resides there will depend on his effectiveness. As a runner. As a receiver. And in another key element in the Chiefs’ pass-first offense.
As a blocker.
Williams has earned his place on the field throughout his tenure in Kansas City because of his reliability in pass protection and as a receiver. The reviews on Edwards-Helaire show inconsistency with the former.
It can’t stay that way for long.
“We’ve had this discussion with him,” Bieniemy said. “You know what, sometimes you see college kids put some good stuff on tape; sometimes you see them put some poor stuff on tape. The thing that we do know is he does have the willingness to block. He understands that’s a huge asset that’s going to help him moving forward to getting him on the field and contributing to what we do on our side of the ball.
“But one thing I will say (is) he does have the attitude and the mindset to get it done. So I’m not concerned with that.”
This story was originally published May 20, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "How the Chiefs will handle their backfield with Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the mix."