A week ago, I devoted my weekly Chiefs column to the team’s acquisition of wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. This week, they added a big-time piece to their defense. With the trade deadline still a few days away, this team understands that no roster is set.
The revolving roster door in the Kansas City Chiefs locker room remains fluid. This team has always pushed the envelope in winning back-to-back Super Bowls. General Manager Brett Veach is a riverboat gambler. He takes calculated risks, and sometimes, he goes for broke.
In his history as the Chiefs’ General Manager, he’s traded away first-round picks, traded talented players, and made some shrewd trades that have fleeced other GMs around the league.
So much so that some won’t work with him anymore.
On Monday, he traded for pass-rushing specialist Joshua Uche for a 2026 sixth-round pick. Uche was misused in New England. Even his former Head Coach, Bill Belichick, spoke about the trade on his weekly appearance with Pat McAfee, stating he was a perfect fit for the Chiefs.
He would know because he drafted the former Michigan standout. Yet, beyond the compensation, what’s impressive about the trade is that Veach added a player to the strength of their team—the defense.
Former Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Herm Edwards told me making trades should not be about shoring up your weaknesses on the roster but to add to the strength of your team.
The Chiefs’ defense is one of the best in the NFL. Some say it’s the best, but Veach found an impact defender who can immediately step on the field in passing situations.
Kansas City has spent considerable dollars on its superstars. Yet you need the other guys as well, who cost less.
Uche is a glue defender, like Drue Tranquill, who is excellent at making plays at the line of scrimmage. Uche has the same mindset and has something all NFL teams need: getting after the quarterback.
Veach has been referred to as a chess master. He also has the benefit of being a three-time Super Bowl Champion, an owner in Clark Hunt, and a Head Coach in Andy Reid, giving him the resources and latitude to tinker with the roster whenever he feels it needs to bolster an area of the roster.
This past off-season, Chris Jones signed a mega deal; the team escalated the back end of Patrick Mahomes mega-contract, making him the highest-paid quarterback per year. When he felt that cornerback L’Jarius Sneed might not be worth the money his agent was asking, like he did two years earlier with Tyreek Hill, he traded him.
In both instances, his ability to see the future paid off. The Dolphins paid a king’s ransom in draft compensation, and the Titans sent a third-round pick, which now is near the top of the round. He knew the moves would not be popular but followed his instincts.
With a game Monday Night at home against the Tampa Bay Bucs, Veach could wait until Tuesday, the day of the trade deadline, to make a move based on roster need. If he strikes a home run, such as New Orleans Saints Cornerback Marshawn Lattimore ends up in a Chiefs uniform, his lore with the fan base will rise even further.
