Josh Simmons’ eventual return to the Kansas City Chiefs lineup could set off more than one ripple along the offensive line, and Kahlil Benson is right in the middle of it.
Simmons has been out since suffering a back injury on August 18, and there still isn’t an official timetable for his return. He has already missed the first four games of the season, and reports don’t sound especially optimistic about him being ready right after the team’s Week 5 bye. But once he is back on the field, Kansas City will have to sort out what his return means for the pieces already in motion.
Benson has handled left tackle duties well enough in Simmons’ absence, but Simmons is not losing his job. The more intriguing question is where Benson fits next.
He was in the mix for right tackle work during the preseason, which could drag that battle back into focus with Jaylon Moore. And there’s another path that may make just as much sense.
The Chiefs tested Benson at guard when Trey Smith was sidelined in training camp and the final preseason games with a hip injury. Moore remained at right tackle, while Benson kicked inside before Simmons’ injury pushed him back out to tackle. If Simmons and Moore are settled at the two tackle spots once everyone is healthy, Benson could become a useful answer on the interior.
That matters because the Chiefs’ interior depth has already been under the microscope. Smith has missed time with injury before, including last year and earlier this summer, and left guard Kingsley Suamataia was recently benched. The picture behind the starting interior trio of Suamataia, center Creed Humphrey, and Smith isn’t exactly reassuring.
Mike Caliendo filled in at left guard in Week 4 when Suamataia was unexpectedly left out, a move head coach Andy Reid still has not fully explained, and the results were, as the source notes, expected. Former Chiefs lineman Mitchell Schwartz would say the naysayers were too loud, but it’s fair to say Chiefs fans would welcome more proven upside behind those starters.
Right now, the main interior reserves are Caliendo, former fifth-round pick Hunter Nourzad, and Joshua Ezeudu. The Chiefs traded for Ezeudu shortly before the season to help deepen the group, but when Suamataia was out, they still rode with Caliendo for all four quarters. That leaves some uncertainty about how much they trust Ezeudu at the moment.
Nourzad is the backup center. Ezeudu can also help outside if needed, and Kansas City brought in Diego Pounds for that same reason.
Still, Caliendo is the clearest coach favorite and the lineman with the most experience in the room. Benson, though, was also a priority prospect this preseason and earned the trust of the decision-makers quickly.
Maybe those guard reps in camp were simply about maximizing his work while getting Jaylon Moore ready for the season. Maybe they were something more.
Either way, if Benson doesn’t claim a starting spot when Simmons is healthy, he may be more than a swing tackle. He could be the kind of movable piece that gives Kansas City real cover inside, too.
And over the course of a long season, that kind of versatility can matter a lot.
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