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2012: Tyson Jackson, Glenn Dorsey, Allen Bailey, Ropati Pitoitua, Shaun Smith
2013: Tyson Jackson, Mike DeVito, Allen Bailey, Austen Lane, Marcus Dixon, Brad Madison, Miguel Chavis, Rob Lohr
Advantage: 2013
The 2013 Chiefs are not noticeably better at 2013, only a little better. This position group, in my mind still has some work to do.
Tyson Jackson and Allen Bailey return from last season. Jackson, of course, is the former No. 3 overall pick and restructured his deal to stay in Kansas City this season. That the current regime was interested in having him come back, and interested in taking the time to restructure his contract, says something about him this season. Expect a big role for him. Bailey, on the other hand, has been a reserve since the Chiefs made him a third round pick. This position group takes a huge leap if Bailey can push for regular playing time.
The answer in our 2012 vs. 2013 comparison comes from Glenn Dorsey and Mike DeVito. What do their contracts say about who is the better player? Dorsey signed a two-year, $6 million deal in San Francisco, averaging $3 million per year. DeVito signed a three-year, $12.6 million deal, averaging $4.2 million per year. The market places a higher value on DeVito's skills.
From what I can tell you shouldn't expect DeVito's impact to vary greatly from what Dorsey did. They're both run-stuffers. They're both, ideally, just two-down players. Neither of them are going to be racking up sacks consistently. DeVito is familiar with Bob Sutton's scheme so hopefully that translates into some early success.
The reserves along the defensive end are an interesting group as well. Last year I was a Ropati Pitoitua fan. Maybe it was because my expectations were so low -- I didn't know much about him coming in -- but I liked what I saw out of him as a reserve. He signed in Tennessee this offseason. Our old pal Shaun Smith also spent some time in KC last year. You can read more about what he's doing right here.
This year's group of reserves include Bailey, Austen Lane and Marcus Dixon, along with 2013 undrafted free agents Brad Madison and Rob Lohr and 2012 undrafted free agent Miguel Chavis.
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