The Kansas City Chiefs are adding a bit more depth up front to protect Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs have reportedly traded for New York Giants Joshua Ezeudu. The former third-round pick struggled to earn consistent playing time in New York. However, with Kansas City needing depth up front, it appears Andy Reid is counting on Ezeudu to help protect Patrick Mahomes.

According to Ian Rapoport, the Chiefs will get Ezeudu from the Giants for a 2028 seventh-round pick, with Kansas City looking to beef up its interior offensive line.

The Giants took Ezeudu in the third round back in 2022, using the 67th overall pick on him. He got his feet wet as a rookie, playing in 10 games and starting two at left guard.

However, in just the second season, things got complicated. He opened the season as a backup, then got thrust into the starting left tackle job in Week 2 when injuries piled up. He held that spot for five straight games before a toe injury ended his season early, landing him on injured reserve in mid-October.

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The 2024 season turned out to be his busiest season, appearing in a career-high 17 games, though he only started three of them, filling in at left tackle a couple of times and working as an extra lineman elsewhere.

There’s a catch, though. Ezeudu didn’t play a single snap last season after hurting his calf and leg back in August.

The Giants actually brought him back this past spring on a one-year deal worth $1.3 million, so this trade wasn’t exactly the plan all along. But roster crunches happen, and Ezeudu became expendable, especially after New York had already dealt away fellow lineman Daniel Faalele to Jacksonville.

What makes this pickup interesting for Kansas City is the versatility. Ezeudu played 58 snaps filling in for Francis Mauigoa against Miami before a leg injury forced him out, one that isn’t expected to keep him out long. Afterward, head coach John Harbaugh laid out exactly what the team sees in him.

“The position flex is the idea, and you may have noticed he went back out to tackle in the fourth quarter, so the ability for him to play both guard and tackle, particularly on the right side, would be helpful for us,” Harbaugh told reporters.

“And that’s our thought. He’s kind of getting to the point now where we feel like he could swing right tackle, right guard. Right now we’re kind of keeping him off the left side and just keeping him to the right side, and that helps a little bit with some of the techniques. It’s like a hitter; he’s not a switch hitter right now on both sides, but he is playing both the inside position and the outside position. So, we think he’s ready for it, that he can handle it, and that gives us some position flexibility as a backup.”

So this is more of a ‘let’s see what we’ve got’ move than a sure thing for the Chiefs.

Chiefs need help to keep Patrick Mahomes protected

Kansas City’s offensive line situation is looking a little rough right now, and the timing couldn’t be worse.

Starting left tackle Josh Simmons has missed back-to-back practices with a back issue, and things aren’t much better behind him either. Backup tackle Matt Waletzko is out with a knee injury, Chu Godrick has also been absent from practice, and star guard Trey Smith is nursing a hip problem of his own.

That’s a lot of players missing up front all at once, and that’s part of the thinking behind bringing in Joshua Ezeudu from the Giants too.

Across his three years in New York, Ezeudu ended up with 33 total games played and 10 starts, split between left tackle, left guard, and a spot as an extra blocker. He gives Andy Reid a lineman who can handle both guard and tackle, which is exactly the kind of flexibility the offensive line needs right now.

Adding to the pressure, Kansas City’s non-starting offensive line has been sloppy this preseason, racking up an excessive number of penalties. That was obvious in the opener against the Rams, where the Chiefs picked up double-digit penalties, plenty of them up front.

The need for additional players is clear, considering that there are two preseason matches scheduled within the space of just six days against both Tampa Bay and Seattle.

This is also why the team has signed tackle Kellen Diesch, who just won a UFL championship with Louisville. Diesch will be one of the other tackles aside from John Campbell, who will provide backup for Reid until things get sorted.

Mahomes tore his ACL and LCL last December against the Chargers, raising real questions about his timeline. Now he’s fully recovered and probable for Week 1 against the Denver Broncos.

Now the pressure shifts to the offensive line, keeping him protected behind a unit that’s dealt with its share of injuries this preseason.