Aaron Schatz from Football Outsiders recently put together a write-up on the Chiefs. He praises Jamaal Charles as one to watch and targets Damion MacIntosh as one he's down on (believing Colin Brown will eventually get the job perhaps). But he had several words on Glenn Dorsey that seem rather interesting:
"Many scouts considered defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey the best player available in the 2008 draft, and the Chiefs were considered lucky when he fell to them at the fifth spot. A lot has changed in a year.
"Dorsey struggled in his rookie season, but so do a lot of highly drafted defensive linemen. In fact, Dorsey's struggles might have been overstated, at least when it comes to playing the run. Dorsey made his average run tackle last season after a gain of just 1.5 yards, the best figure of any of the Chiefs' defensive linemen. However, he had problems on pass plays and was unable to get consistent penetration.
"Now, Kansas City's decision to shift to a 3-4 defensive scheme leaves Dorsey without a position. The plan is to move him to defensive end, but the role of a 3-4 end is generally to soak up blockers, and that's not Dorsey's strength. In college, he was a player whose specialty was getting upfield and disrupting the quarterback. There's also a size problem; at 6-foot-1, he's smaller than other 3-4 ends. (The starting ends for both New England and Pittsburgh, for example, are 6-foot-5 or taller.)
"Dorsey compounded his problems because, like McIntosh, he failed conditioning tests at the start of Chiefs training camp. Right now, he doesn't seem to be a starter on the Chiefs' depth chart. In camp, he's been getting second-string snaps at right defensive end, behind third-round rookie Alex Magee."
Filed under: