Kansas City Chiefs Likely To Use Dexter McCluster To Fill Void From Tony Moeaki Injury

The Kansas City Chiefs have a star in the making in Tony Moeaki. The well-rounded tight end established himself as an emerging player at the position with a rookie year that not only boasted very solid stats — 47 receptions, 556 yards, 3 touchdowns — but he also showcased good blocking skills and a great chemistry with Matt Cassel and the Chiefs offensive scheme.

Just earlier this offseason, the KC Star’s Adam Teicher said the tight end was the key to the Chiefs passing game despite the addition of former Cardinal Steve Breaston and first round choice Jonathan Baldwin. Peter King called Moeaki the Dallas Clark of the Kansas City Chiefs. Those words just prove what Chiefs brass have likely been grinning about for some time — that Moeaki was going significant places. Now that’s been placed on hold.

The Chiefs are now left with a void due to Moeaki’s season-ending injury. And it’s a difficult one to replace. There’s no player on the roster who can take over his duties. The Chiefs did just sign Anthony Becht before the injury, but he was brought in to add another blocking tight end to go with Leonard Pope. The duo together should help goal line and short yardage situations, but they won’t give Cassel the pass catching opportunities he’d have with Moeaki in hand.

Instead the Chiefs are going to have to find help elsewhere. As the dominoes fell over the weekend with hundreds of players getting cut, the Chiefs apparently stood still content with their own players despite the injuries. Desmond Clark was released from the Bears — a veteran TE with solid hands. Chase Coffman is from the region and grew stale on the Bengals bench, but his pass catching ability should be well-known around the Kansas City area. Both remain available but for now, the Chiefs don’t seem interested.

Jake O’Connell has stuck around through a few training camps despite always being on the fringes or among the forgotten. He has 5 career receptions and continues to linger as a former seventh rounder. Maybe the Chiefs believe he’s still capable of stepping in — he’s obviously still on the team. Or maybe he’s next to go once they sign someone else. There’s simply no telling at this point.

The assumption, then, is that help will come from within. And the one player sitting around who hasn’t been utilized to his fullest extent is Dexter McCluster. While McCluster cannot help with pass protection, he can help as a target for Matt Cassel outside the box in much the same way Moeaki used to slip off of the line to spread the defense. The goal is to keep defenses honest and respectful of the entire field of play, and McCluster has the game-breaking ability and athleticism to be a threat if he’s used properly.

The best bet at this point is for the Chiefs to retool with what they have in house instead of bringing in someone from the outside. McCluster seems to fit the bill better than anyone given the combination of his obvious talent with a lack of position and expectation. If anyone can rise to the occasion it will be the former second round choice. Here’s hoping the Chiefs can ease the pain felt from the loss of Moeaki and still move forward with their high powered offense.

Perhaps it’s because he’d already referred to Tony Moeaki as the next Dallas Clark, but it’s clear Peter King felt the same sting that Chiefs Nation felt with the announcement of the talented tight end’s season ending injury. In fact, King felt it so much that he called it “the most devastating roster move for any offense this weekend” via Twitter.

King’s absolutely right about the significant loss felt by the Chiefs front office and coaching staff at this point. To lose Moeaki is to lose the all-around catalyst that he was becoming — both a solid blocker and someone with great hands who could be dangerous off the line or from the slot. With the time it will take Jonathan Baldwin to get ready, Steve Breaston could have slipped to the outside with Moeaki in the slot. Instead, Jerheme Urban gets a stronger look early in the season.

As for any replacements, they won’t come from the in house options. The Chiefs failed to sign any tight ends thus far even though Chase Coffman and Desmond Clark have been released among others. While both have good hands, they’re not the player that Moeaki is so to expect someone to be able to come in and replace those stats is a silly notion. However, the Chiefs will need someone to occupy that role unless they believe that Leonard Pope or Anthony Becht can do the job with a shift in offensive philosophy.

The loss of Moeaki definitely hurts and his development into a top-flight tight end in the NFL is now on hold. As Moeaki waits for his chance again next season, the Chiefs can only hope they don’t feel the loss nearly as much as everyone believes they will at this point.

The Chiefs have lost a tremendous receiving option for Matt Cassel with the announcement today of Tony Moeaki’s torn ACL and subsequent placement on injured reserve. That said, with the dawn of the regular season in just a few days, it’s important for the Chiefs to find a replacement and now is the opportune time, especially with the Bears recent release of longtime tight end Desmond Clark.

The current crop of tight ends on the Chiefs are of the blocking variety. Anthony Becht and Leonard Pope both have great size and are assets in a run-oriented offense of the Chiefs. However, the Chiefs lack the depth at wideout to withstand a tight end crew that lacks any receiving options, and that’s where Clark comes in.

Clark was released earlier today and he stated so much via Twitter. “Yes. The Bears released me this morning. I played my butt off but sometimes it’s more about the business. That’s what it boiled down to.”

Clark was with the Bears since 2003 after first coming into the league with the Denver Broncos in ‘99. He’s an older veteran obviously, but he’s long been known for his good hands — the very thing the Chiefs could use at this point. If utilized well, Clark could still provide a solid receiving option for Cassel. To date, Clark has 323 catches for 3,591 yards and 27 touchdowns.