Brett Veach’s Great Gamble: How the Chiefs Let a Defensive Star and a Desperate Running Back Slip Away at the Deadline

The Kansas City Chiefs, fresh off their mid-season bye week, find themselves at a crucial inflection point. They are healthier, with key personnel returning to the roster, yet fundamental questions about their depth and overall momentum remain stubbornly unresolved. The calculated restraint demonstrated by the front office at the 2025 NFL trade deadline, a decision that initially raised mere eyebrows, has now devolved into a massive controversy facing intense fan and media scrutiny. General Manager Brett Veach’s choice to stand pat, trusting in the “championship infrastructure” and internal solutions, now hangs over the franchise like a shadow of doubt.

What happens next will be the ultimate verdict on Veach’s philosophy. Was the organization’s confidence in its existing personnel justified, or did the team squander a golden opportunity to solidify their position for another deep playoff run? Belief alone won’t decide the AFC West, and as the reality of two painful, last-minute near-misses comes to light, the anxiety within Chiefs Kingdom is palpable. The pursuit of two specific, high-impact players—one on defense and one on offense—uncovered the Chiefs’ deepest needs and highlighted the shocking narrowness of their margin for error.

The Return of Key Cogs: Health and Hope

The good news, at least on the surface, is the return of injured contributors. The bye week served its intended purpose, allowing the Chiefs to heal up for the grueling second-half playoff push. The ultimate target—winning the AFC West for a tenth consecutive year—remains in sight, but the path ahead is fraught with challenge. Tactical discipline and intelligent personnel decisions are paramount to maintaining the championship-caliber performance expected in Kansas City.

Crucially, several important pieces are expected to suit up after missing recent action. Fox Sports confirmed that first-round left tackle Josh Simmons has rejoined the team following an extended absence due to a family matter. Simmons, a surprising standout, had claimed a starting role protecting Patrick Mahomes’s blind side and exceeded nearly every expectation before his sudden departure ahead of Week 6. While his exact game-day availability remains undetermined, his presence provides a necessary emotional and physical lift. Furthermore, right tackle Jawaan Taylor, who exited a recent loss with an ankle problem, showed improvement even before the break and is expected to be ready for Sunday’s kickoff against Denver.

Yet, the influx of returning health cannot fully erase the lingering concerns caused by the trade deadline silence. Veach’s deadline day decisions are now drawing acute scrutiny, focused less on the deals he completed and more on the two deals that agonizingly slipped away.

The Edge Rusher That Got Away: Boye Mafe

The most shocking revelation of the deadline aftermath was the Chiefs’ “forceful late attempt” to acquire Seattle’s talented edge defender, Boye Mafe. According to reports from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Chiefs came “extremely close” to landing Mafe, a near-deal that almost crossed the finish line at Tuesday’s NFL deadline. The pursuit was a late, aggressive push, with some sources even believing the deal was completed before Seattle ultimately opted to hold onto their young star.

Missing out on Mafe may prove more painful than any deal the Chiefs actually consummated, especially given the contradictory evidence surrounding Kansas City’s defensive front. Adding an edge presence like Mafe carries obvious appeal. The 2022 second-round selection had accumulated 19 sacks across 57 regular-season appearances, peaking in 2023 with career-best numbers in tackles, tackles for loss, quarterback hits, and sacks. While his production had slightly declined this year, he remains a high-potential difference-maker who would have instantly solidified a pass rush that presents a confusing contradiction.

Under the “mad genius” defensive coordination of Steve Spagnuolo, the Chiefs’ defense ranks fourth in overall scoring and sixth in points surrendered per drive. Optimistic observers point to their fourth-place ranking in non-blitz pressure rate and eighth-place standing in overall pressure rate. Yet, the skeptical counter-argument is equally compelling: the defense ranks 21st in ESPN’s pass rush win rate and worst in the league in quarterback hurry rate (just 3.1%). All-Pro Chris Jones, a superstar by all measures, shares second place on the team with a mere two sacks and simply isn’t producing at his previous elite level. Mafe, despite his 2025 sack count being low, would have provided a much-needed, high-floor presence to alleviate pressure on Jones and George Karloftis. Veach’s decision to rely on Charles Omenihu, Mike Danna, or rookie Ashton Ghillere to step up is the core of the gamble, one that could be instantly regretted if the defense falters in a crucial late-season game.

The Running Back Who Begged Out: Jerome Ford

If the Mafe miss was a strategic failure to acquire a premium piece, the failure to secure veteran running back Jerome Ford of the Cleveland Browns represents a shocking dereliction of duty on the offensive side of the ball. The running back position represented an obvious vulnerability for the Chiefs, especially with Isaiah Pacheco unavailable due to injury and the current rotation producing inconsistent, uninspiring results.

Ford was not just a theoretical target; he was a realistic one who “seemed eager for relocation.” The veteran back made his visible expressions of unhappiness and dissatisfaction with the current situation in Cleveland abundantly clear. He publicly re-shared two TikTok videos expressing workplace frustration, a signal that he would have welcomed a trade to a contender. He never identified a preferred landing spot, but his behavior made it plain: joining the Kansas City Chiefs, a franchise still competing for championships, would have been infinitely more desirable than staying with a directionless Browns organization.

Ford represented exactly the type of reinforcement this struggling offense needed. While his 2024 production hadn’t matched his previous year, his abilities still translate to reliable short-yardage contributions and explosiveness on third down. Bringing in a player with Ford’s attributes—a proven, reliable talent actively seeking a new home—would have provided instant backfield stability and depth.

The failure to add Ford, or any capable ball carrier, deeply frustrated the fan base. Critics argue that a more aggressive stance would have been justified, considering the physical toll of an NFL season and the narrow margins that define playoff contention. Instead, Veach chose to stick to his guns, apparently believing that existing roster solutions, despite their struggles, are adequate. The fact that a player openly seeking an escape to a contender was available, and the team with a clear need passed, feels conspicuously absent in a season defined by maximizing every advantage.

The Season-Defining Verdict

Brett Veach’s 2025 trade deadline inactivity is less about inaction and more about a high-stakes championship gamble. He doubled down on his belief in the system, the coaching staff, and the inherent resilience of the established core, even if that core is showing cracks—specifically in run defense (a “genuine liability” at 25th overall), middle-of-the-field coverage vulnerability, and an inconsistent pass rush.

By declining to pull the trigger on Boye Mafe, Veach relied on Spagnuolo’s creativity and a return to elite form by Chris Jones, whose current output is questionable. By passing on Jerome Ford, he risked the entire running game’s stability on the health of Pacheco and the hope that unproven backs will suddenly find consistency. These decisions, made on the finest of margins, have transformed two talented players into painful ‘what-ifs’ that will haunt the organization every time the defense gives up a crucial running play or the offense sputters in the red zone.

The playoff race is intensifying, and the AFC West will not be decided by belief alone. Veach’s calculated restraint has placed the full weight of the championship pursuit onto the shoulders of his existing roster, a weight that might prove too much without the reinforcements that were available for the taking. Time will tell if the general manager’s confidence was justified, or if the agony of the players who nearly became Chiefs becomes the defining story of a championship season lost.