Kansas City Chiefs sign rookie linebacker Dorian O’Daniel

The Kansas City Chiefs have signed third-round linebacker Dorian O’Daniel to his rookie contract, per the NFL’s transactions report.

O’Daniel, 23, played college football at Clemson University.

“Dorian O’Daniel is a guy that can be a chess piece for us,” Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said after his selection. “We play in so much dime and sub‐packages. This guy will be on the field and be able to cover tight ends, do a lot of different things in regards to matching in our sub‐personnel and then we had him graded as the highest rated special teams player. So a guy like that at pick 100 is extremely valuable to us.”

The Chiefs have said they foresee O’Daniel getting into the mix on passing downs.

“We think he can develop into Will linebacker and provide depth behind Reggie (Ragland) and Anthony (Hitchens),” Veach added. “We play a lot of dime and he’ll continue to grow and develop and add some more weight. But the reality of it is, we kind of like him where he is.

“Let him run around and make plays and then play on all (special) teams. If you’re playing 40 to 50 percent in regards to sub then playing on all those teams that’s a full night’s work.”

The Chiefs have now signed five out of their six draft picks, including top pick Breeland Speaks. Florida State defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi, who the Chiefs also selected in the third round, remains the only unsigned pick.