It wasn’t that long ago that the Kansas City Chiefs were struggling to find answers at the second level of their defense. But going into 2023, it’s arguably the defense’s strongest, deepest unit.
Consider the case of the team’s recently acquired linebacker Drue Tranquill. Last season — in the final year of his rookie deal with the Los Angeles Chargers — he started 16 games, collecting 146 tackles (95 solo, 10 for loss), five sacks, eight quarterback hits, four passes defended, an interception and a forced fumble. Every one of those numbers represented a career-high.