The Kansas City Chiefs need to sign a new left tackle for Patrick Mahomes if they plan on successfully defending their title for the third year in a row next season.

The team can fully hand the keys to Wanya Morris, especially since Donovan Smith is set to hit free agency this summer, but he didn’t have a strong enough rookie campaign to the point that doing so is a no-brainer.

With that said, the Kansas City Chiefs could look into their AFC rivals for potential reinforcements, and one high-risk, high-reward player to keep in mind is the New York Jets’ 2020 first-round pick, Mekhi Becton, who is expected to hit the open market this month.

Mekhi Becton managed to play 16 games last season, but PFF had him as one of the lowest-graded tackles in the NFL (53.2 grade, good for 66th-best out of 81 tackles).

Why should the Kansas City Chiefs take a risk on Mekhi Becton?

Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach has built a reputation for finding diamonds in the rough by adding former first-rounders to the team who struggled elsewhere previously, and perhaps Becton would fit that bill.

However, the only downside to getting Mekhi Becton is his checkered injury history, since he has spent two seasons out of his four-year NFL career playing one game or fewer.

Although Becton has a calculated market value of $12.9 million in annual salary, according to Spotrac, the Kansas City Chiefs could negotiate for less, especially since most of their financial resources are currently tied up with L’Jarius Sneed and Chris Jones.

Throughout his NFL career, Mekhi Becton has been known as a solid run blocker, earning grades of at least 73.0 in two out of his three healthy seasons. However, his pass protection could be improved, and Kansas City Chiefs offensive line coach Andy Heck could work with him on that.

Other options for the Kansas City Chiefs

If the Kansas City Chiefs aren’t fond of Mekhi Becton, they could look at Tyron Smith, who is set to be a free agent this month, to bolster their offensive line.

Like Becton, injuries have been a problem for Smith, but he is coming off a decent 2023 campaign with the Dallas Cowboys, logging an impressive 83.8 by the PFF after playing 13 games.