With less than a week left until the 2024 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs still do not have a definite starting left tackle on the team.
While the team could address the left tackle position in the draft, PFF’s Brad Spielberger believes that Kansas City is the best place for experienced free agent OT Andre Dillard.
“Dillard’s brief time with the Titans did not go well, but he was a student of Jeff Stoutland University with the Philadelphia Eagles, and the former first-round pick has experience at both tackle spots as well as at guard,” Spielberger wrote on March 28.
What to Know About Andre Dillard
Dillard, 28, was a first-round pick — 22nd overall — of the Eagles in 2019 from Washington State.
Standing at 6-foot-5 and weighing 315 pounds, Dillard was meant to be the future starting left tackle of the Eagles once the team got rid of six-time All-Pro Jason Peters. But that never happened.
Between the 2019 and 2020 seasons, when Dillard and Peters were both on the team, Peters missed a total of 11 regular season games. However, Dillard did not manage to show enough during his early opportunities in the NFL to prove that he was the team’s future starter. This led to Dillard playing just 37 snaps in the regular season and 20 during the team’s Super Bowl run during his final season in Philly, according to PFF.
Throughout his three seasons with the Eagles, Dillard gave up 45 total quarterback pressures (35 hurries, 5 sacks, 5 hits) on 714 offensive snaps played.
In the 2023 offseason, the Tennessee Titans signed Dillard to a three-year, $29 million deal, which included a $5.9 million signing bonus and $13 million guaranteed, per Spotrac.
Dillard’s sole season in Tennessee did not go well. In 16 games played during the 2023 season — four of which he started — Dillard gave up 41 total QB pressures (20 hurries, 12 sacks, 9 hits) and had 5 penalties called against him.
His poor performance last season led to Dillard being released by the Titans on March 13.
Over his four years in the NFL, Dillard has earned $19.8 million, according to Spotrac.
Would Andre Dillard Fill a Need for Chiefs?
Dillard would potentially satisfy a requirement for a left tackle for the two-time defending Super Bowl champions.
Last season, the former first-round pick was part of a Titans offensive line that gave up 64 total sacks, ranking fifth-worst in the NFL. This shows that there wasn’t much consistency across the entire offensive line in Tennessee. Therefore, the blame should not solely fall on Dillard for his poor performance, although he is not exempt from criticism.
If Dillard were to join Kansas City, he would need to compete with second-year offensive tackle Wanya Morris for the starting left tackle position. Last season, Morris filled in for veteran Donovan Smith at times and allowed a total of 24 QB pressures (15 hurries, 7 hits, 2 sacks) in 235 total pass-blocking snaps, according to PFF. Therefore, there is no guarantee that Dillard would be the starter if he signed with the Chiefs.
The ultimate factor in determining how well Dillard fits with the Chiefs would be his contract demands.
At this point, Dillard has not shown that he is a player good enough to start. Therefore, a contract for Dillard that lasts for one year and includes many rewards is a reasonable agreement.
According to the Over The Cap, once the Chiefs deduct cornerback L’Jarius Sneed‘s $19.8 million cap hit from their books, the team will have $26.3 million in cap space.
