Chiefs position analysis: tight end

By Mike Ash  |   Wednesday, February 20, 2008  |  Comments( 5 )

Kansas City Chiefs
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Moving right along with our offseason analysis, we take a look at Kansas City's tight ends.

Tony Gonzalez

After re-signing with the Chiefs at the start of 2007, Gonzalez not only turned in another Pro Bowl season, he had one of the best campaigns of his surefire Hall of Fame career. Even with Kansas City's offense ranked second from last in the NFL, Gonzalez finished the season with 99 receptions - his second-best total to date - and 1,172 yards, a mark he has only passed twice in his previous 10 seasons.

Those numbers were also good enough to lead all NFL tight ends, proving that Gonzalez has yet to lose a step as he continues to rewrite the record books. With four more years on his latest and possibly final contract, Gonzalez will continue to play a large role in the Chiefs' offense for the foreseeable future.

Kris Wilson

To say it was a surprise when Kansas City used a second-round pick on a tight end in the 2004 draft would be a gigantic understatement. With Gonzalez right in the prime of his career, why would the Chiefs feel the need to use such a high pick on Wilson, a tight end out of Pittsburgh?

Four years later, the answer is no more clear than it was back then. Former Chiefs offensive coordinator Al Saunders raved about Wilson during his rookie training camp, pointing out all the ways that his new weapon could be utilized. At 6-foot-2 and 250 pounds, Wilson could conceivably line up as a tight end, a receiver or a fullback, and Saunders was excited about using Wilson's versatility to create mismatches for opposing defenses.

But after breaking his leg in the team's final preseason contest, Wilson only played in three games his rookie season and went without a reception. Coming back healthy in 2005, and with Saunders still running the offense, Wilson had all of three catches for 33 yards in his second year with the Chiefs.

Ironically, it wasn't until Saunders left Kansas City in 2006 that Wilson became more involved in the offense. When fullback Ronnie Cruz suffered a season-ending injury, Wilson took over the role and finished the year with 132 receiving yards and three touchdowns. He continued as a fullback in 2007, often splitting time with Boomer Grigsby toward the end of the season.

An unrestricted free agent in 2008, Wilson appears ready to test the market according to comments he's made to the media. And therein lies the unfortunate part about his unremarkable career with the Chiefs - he may very well catch on with another team and prove to be a solid tight end. But with Gonzalez holding down the fort, there was never any use for him in Kansas City, which made drafting him both a disservice to the team and to Wilson.

If not for a fourth-round pick out of Idaho State named Jared Allen, 2004 would have gone down as one of the worst drafting performances in the history of the Chiefs' franchise.

Jason Dunn

Used as a blocking tight end, Dunn was a major part of the Chiefs' successful offensive line earlier this decade. Opening up holes in the running game, and occasionally bringing in a few catches, Dunn was like an extra lineman on the field and helped both Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson find the end zone on numerous occasions.

But like Will Shields and Willie Roaf, the other great Chiefs blockers of that era, injury and time appear to be creeping up on Dunn. Chuck Cook, the Chiefs' director of college scouting, noted in a Kansas City Star article in January that the team would like to find a young blocking tight end as a replacement. The obvious indication is that Dunn is just that - done - with the Chiefs, although whether he plans to retire or the team simply releases him has yet to be seen.

Michael Allan

Kansas City's seventh-round pick in 2007, Allan was the first Division III player invited to the NFL combine since 2003. Playing his college ball at Whitworth, which has only produced a handful of NFL players in the last century, the 6-6 tight end dominated against lesser competition. But when matched up against the cream of the crop at the combine and the East-West Shrine game, Allan proved he could still hold his own.

He caught the attention of the NFL Network and several draft sites, one of which speculated that Allan could have raised his stock from total unknown to as high as a fourth-round pick. So when the Chiefs saw him still sitting there in the seventh round, they grabbed him.

Allan spent most of his season on the practice squad, but showed impressive hands and an ability to bring in the ball during preseason action. And with a few weeks left to go in the season, the Chiefs added him to the main roster despite having Gonzalez, Wilson, and Dunn on the depth chart ahead of him. A roster move like that is typically made when a team wants to protect a player they like from getting poached off their practice squad at the end of the year.

He won't be supplanting Gonzalez from a starting job anytime soon, but Allan is someone to keep an eye on during the offseason camps as he tries to work his way into the Chiefs' offense.

Offseason analysis:

Aside from the possible addition of a replacement for Dunn, there shouldn't be any movement from Kansas City in the tight end market. The Chiefs still have one of the game's best and will ideally bring Allan along while he can still learn from the future Hall of Famer.

Up next: the offensive line.
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