HEADLINES

Kyle Long To Visit Raiders, Chiefs

March 14th, 2021 at 9:59pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We heard recently that Kyle Long was planning on playing in 2021, and now we know he’s serious about it. The recently un-retired offensive lineman will visit the Raiders and then Chiefs this week, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Schefter reports that Long will be in Las Vegas on Monday before heading to Kansas City. As he points out Long’s father, Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long, played his entire 13-year career with the Raiders, so this would be a cool continuation of a family legacy. Long retired in January of 2020, but one season away from the game was enough to satisfy his body.

Drafted 20th overall by the Bears in 2013, Long made the Pro Bowl in each of his first three seasons before injuries quickly derailed his career. Over the past four seasons he never appeared in more than 10 games for Chicago, and played only four most recently in 2019.

Now apparently fully healthy, he’s ready to get back on the gridiron, and both of these teams make sense as potential suitors. The Raiders just traded tackle Trent Brown, and cut guards Richie Incognito and Gabe Jackson in the past couple weeks, although Incognito may return on a cheaper deal. The Chiefs have made revamping Patrick Mahomes‘ offensive line a priority this offseason, and they’ve already cut both of their starting tackles and are expected to let their starting center walk.

Long has mostly played guard in the NFL, but did make the Pro Bowl while filling in as the Bears’ right tackle in 2015. It sounds like he could have numerous options to choose from during his first taste of free agency.

View Comments (7)