Multiple members of the Chiefs appear on PFF’s list, although Patrick Mahomes surprisingly isn’t one of them.
The Kansas City Chiefs sit at 7-2 during their bye week, boasting one of the NFL’s best teams and rosters. As the franchise rests up before the final stretch of the season, all eyes in Kansas City are still on repeating as Super Bowl champions.
A handful of specific players have stepped up and helped keep those hopes alive in 2023, with three of them getting recognized for their efforts.
Pro Football Focus released its midseason All-Pro team this week, and multiple members of the Chiefs made the cut. Surprisingly, quarterback Patrick Mahomes wasn’t one of them. Tight end Travis Kelce (first team), left guard Joe Thuney (second team) and cornerback Trent McDuffie (first team) are recognized for their efforts this season and join some of their talented NFL peers.
Kelce has outstanding offense (84.2) and receiving (90.1) grades this year, as well as 57 receptions for 597 yards and four touchdowns to boot. Despite battling injuries and Father Time in 2023, he remains the NFL’s best tight end. Kansas City has relied on Kelce to help keep the offense afloat, and he’s answered the call several times. Here’s what PFF wrote about Kelce making its top team:
Kelce has 49 more receiving yards than the next-best tight end, is the only player at the position to see 10 or more targets and earn a 90.0-plus PFF receiving grade and is averaging a position-leading 2.43 yards per route run.
McDuffie is a second-year cornerback, although he doesn’t play like one. His blend of athleticism, instincts and smarts makes him one of the league’s better defensive backs, and he’s emerged as a legitimate blue-chip prospect for the Chiefs. He’s one of PFF‘s highest-graded overall cornerbacks (81.5) and ranks highly in total pressures (7) and stops (20). It’s a fitting pick:
In his second year out of Washington, McDuffie is impressing once again for the Kansas City Chiefs. Across 315 coverage snaps, he has allowed just one touchdown. But most impressive has been his ability to strip the ball away from his opponents, with four forced fumbles so far this year.
Thuney’s grades are down from where they were in his first two seasons as a Chief, yet he remains one of the better guards in the game. He’s PFF‘s highest-grade pass blocker among guards with 20% of qualified snaps, and he’s 11th in overall grade on the same parameters. With that said, the 30-year-old has already been credited with allowing 19 pressures. That’s already the most he’s logged since 2018, likely contributing to him being a member of the second team rather than the first team.
