KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- General manager John Dorsey was being kind when he described the Kansas City Chiefs' problems on the offensive line the past season as “a couple of cracks in the foundation."
They were actually much larger than cracks. Many times, the Chiefs were porous on the offensive line. Chiefs quarterbacks were sacked or under pressure on 29.2 percent of dropbacks the past season, seventh worst in the league. Both guards and left tackle Eric Fisher were rated among the worst at their positions by Pro Football Focus.
The Chiefs' remake of their offensive line continued in the second round of the NFL draft when they selected Missouri’s Mitch Morse. His addition follows the acquisition of two veterans, guards Ben Grubbs and Paul Fanaika.
Dorsey indicated the Chiefs would initially look at Morse at center, where they have only the untested Eric Kush. But Morse could eventually wind up at guard or even tackle.
“I would think you try him at center as a backup there [or] see if he can play guard," Dorsey said. “He can probably get you out of a game at tackle. But his versatility, his athleticism, his smarts, his toughness are really good qualities to have."
The Chiefs continued to build at positions of need in the third round by drafting Georgia wide receiver Chris Conley and Oregon State cornerback Steven Nelson.
The Chiefs moved up four spots to get Conley, which was an indication of how much they felt they needed a receiver and Conley in particular. Conley can be a deep threat. He ran a 4.35 40 at the scouting combine in February. He averaged an impressive 18.2 yards per catch as a senior.
Nelson is the second cornerback selected by the Chiefs. Marcus Peters of Washington was their first-round choice, and those two join Sean Smith, Jamell Fleming and Phillip Gaines to give the Chiefs a selection of players to choose from.
“If you can have four, five corners on your team that can play and contribute ... you’d like to get as many as you can because that’s the way football has changed a little bit here in the last five years," Dorsey said.
The addition of Morse sets off a scramble for starting jobs on the offensive line. The Chiefs have Kush and Morse at center, Grubbs, Fanaika and Zach Fulton at guard, and Fisher, Donald Stephenson and Jeff Allen at tackle.
The only ones who appear to have secured starting spots are Fisher at left tackle and Grubbs at left guard.
Morse was a center as a sophomore at Missouri before he moved to tackle for his final two collegiate seasons.
“If I have to move back to that position, I’ll be just fine," Morse said. “I have a lot of game time experience at center, if that’s what the Kansas City Chiefs need me to play, and I feel confident going forward I can be a good asset to the Chiefs, if need be, at center."