Matt Nagy Reveals Chiefs' Philosophy Regarding Left Tackle Competition

With Wanya Morris surpassing Kingsley Suamataia on the depth chart, the Chiefs aren't letting either player get too comfortable early in the season.

Dec 25, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy, left, stands next to head coach Andy Ried on field against the Las Vegas Raiders during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

As the Kansas City Chiefs continue to prepare for the Los Angeles Chargers, they're expected to do so with Wanya Morris as their starting left tackle. That wasn't on many folks' bingo cards when the year began, but rookie Kingsley Suamataia was sent to the bench after just two regular-season games.

The shift isn't viewed as a definitive long-term thing, as head coach Andy Reid indicated leading up to Week 3's game against the Atlanta Falcons that both players would have chances to see the field. That ended up being true, although not in the fashion some expected. Suamataia entered the game sparingly as an extra lineman and didn't line up correctly on a couple of occasions. Morris held down the starting role all game long, doing a mostly respectable job in the process.

What's the status of the left tackle competition with Week 4 on the horizon? Is it a battle at all anymore? Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy provided some context on Thursday morning.

"It's a great question," Nagy said. "Ideally, you'd love for one of those guys to just be able to take over and have it. I think the beauty of this is right now, going through that, these guys are going to have opportunities. Wanya did a good job last week; he can continue to improve. Kingsley's got to do the same thing. It's a part of this league. There's competition, there's injuries, so you've always got to stay prepared. It's our job as coaches to make sure we're developing them Monday through Saturday, throughout the week. We can't just sit there – and this is any player, not just O-line – you've got to make sure that we're developing these guys. If they're not a starter, what are we doing to try to make them a starter?"

Given the performance Morris had in Atlanta, it's hard to see him not being given another shot moving forward. According to Pro Football Focus, the former third-round pick posted a 65.6 pass blocking grade and surrendered just two pressures. While the second-year man was far from perfect at keeping quarterback Patrick Mahomes clean, it was a massive improvement over Suamataia in Week 2.

Suamataia now finds himself on the outside looking in, at least for the time being. In that aforementioned win over the Cincinnati Bengals, it happened more in spite of him than because of him. On 27 opportunities, the second-round pick allowed several pressures and a pair of sacks while also committing two penalties. He looked completely overmatched lined up across from Trey Hendrickson, ultimately getting benched in favor of Morris in the fourth quarter.

As Nagy mentioned, though, injuries and competition are oftentimes inevitable at this stage. Look no further than last season, when a then-rookie Morris had to fill in for Donovan Smith several games in a row. Another example is this spring and summer's initial battle between Morris and Suamataia, when the former struggled to stay healthy and lost the race. All it takes is one snap in a game or a single practice rep for circumstances to change.

That's why, like Nagy said, Kansas City must keep both players engaged and preparing as if they're starting.

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