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The Kansas City Chiefs appear to have their bookend tackles. Probably. Maybe. Branden Albert has not attended any of the Chiefs offseason program to this point but KC Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said on Friday he expects Albert to show up when the Chiefs begin OTAs. That Albert is back means the Chiefs have a clearer plan for Eric Fisher, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 NFL Draft -- he's a right tackle. Albert will be on the left side and Donald Stephenson seems to figure in as a swing tackle.
"Branden will play the left side, and Eric is going to play the right side," Reid said after Friday's rookie minicamp, via quotes from the Chiefs. "I think that gives you two pretty good bookends right there. We also know we have Donald Stephenson who is also a good football player. We have a good offensive line, and you know how I feel about that. It starts there.
"I thought Eric came out and did a nice job," Reid continued. "He really looked like he felt comfortable there. It was new for him, but he stepped right in and had a heck of a day. Again, we look forward to getting everybody up there. At the end of the OTAs, we'll have a final minicamp to put the rest of them together."
Longterm contract talks with Albert are "an ongoing thing", whatever that means. As for Fisher, day one is in the books. The Chiefs aren't practicing with pads so there's only so much an offensive lineman can do but Fisher was pleased with the results.
"Very productive day," Fisher said. "Obviously learning a new system, so it's going to take a few days, but I thought it was a productive day. I was playing right tackle. It felt pretty good, it's going to take a little bit to transition, but overall, it was a good day."
Fisher was a left tackle at Michigan but Albert is a proven left tackle, so Fisher will be on the right side for now. Will it be like that next year? Only time will tell but, as many of you have read from me, I don't think Albert will be here beyond 2013, which means Fisher will likely take that left tackle role.
"I don't think it's too bad," Reid said of switching from left to right tackle. "I think if you can play the left side, you can definitely play the right side. I know he can. I know he can do that."
Fisher is one day into proving he can do that.