Commanders should look to familiar faces for TE help in 2023

Commanders should call the Chiefs for TE help

Eric Bieniemy obviously likes having tight ends that can threaten a defense. He had the best one in the league in Travis Kelce during his time with the Kansas City Chiefs, where he won two Super Bowls.

Behind Kelce, the Chiefs always made sure they had some athletically-gifted backups who could play in two-tight end sets, or fill in if Kelce ever needed a breather. Last pre-season, Commanders fans got a first-hand look at one of those backups as Jody Fortson beat Kendall Fuller for one touchdown, and then Kamren Curl for another.

The Chiefs like tight ends so much that they currently have six of them on the roster. At this early stage, I’m guessing that Fortson, Noah Gray, and Blake Bell will take roster spots behind Kelce. That would send Matt Bushman to the practice squad. It also might mean the practice squad for Kendall Blanton, though I’m guessing they may only stash one tight end to begin the campaign.

I’m not especially interested in Blanton. Though he is, to the best of my knowledge, the only player in the league who has earned a Super Bowl ring in each of the last two seasons.

He made a brief appearance with Washington last year and, at 27 years old, doesn’t have a very high ceiling as a receiving option. I feel the same way about the veteran Bell.

But if Bushman is on the table, I am interested.

Bushman is the same age as Blanton, though he has not played as much. His two-year mission while at BYU delayed his entry into the league. But he is a more dynamic receiver.

Though he doesn’t have high-end speed, he is still a big man who can run. Bushman is listed at 6-foot-5, but I swear he looks even taller when he is on the field. And he has enough speed to threaten down the seam, while also having the quickness to work over the middle.

I actually think he looks a bit awkward, but truth be told, I used to think that about Kelce, too. Just goes to show that you can be awkward and effective at the same time.

And if that weren’t enough for you, Bushman is the son-in-law of three-time Pro Bowl tight end Chad Lewis, another tall BYU product. There ought to be some quality shop talk around that dinner table.

My source in Kansas City tells me that the Chiefs really want some depth in the secondary. With the Commanders drafting defensive backs in the first two rounds this year, I am willing to part with a decent young prospect like Rachad Wildgoose or Tariq Castro-Fields to get a decent young tight-end prospect in return.

And should Bushman so impress Andy Reid this off-season that he doesn’t want to part with him, Fortson and Gray may suddenly become expendable. Bottom line – I think there is a trade to be made, and I trust Bieniemy to know who he wants from that roster.