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.