Chiefs free agent outlook: LG Kelechi Osemele

In the aftermath of Super LV, the Kansas City Chiefs will be tasked with building a roster to get them back to the Super Bowl for a third consecutive year. Brett Veach will have a decision to make on a number of unrestricted free agents this offseason, many of whom contributed to the success of this franchise lately. One of those players is left guard Kelechi Osemele.

When the Chiefs had two offensive linemen opt out for the 2020 season, they went out and signed Osemele. He was coming off a tumultuous year with the New York Jets, where a disagreement over the need for shoulder surgery led to his eventual release from the team. That injury allowed the Chiefs to swoop in and grab Osemele late in the process.

Early on in training camp, Osemele and Mike Remmers rotated at the guard spot. Osemele opened up the season against the Houston Texans as the starter at left guard and was a difference-maker in the ground game. His people-moving ability was on display in Week 1 and helped Clyde Edwards-Helaire to his second-best rushing performance of the season.

In the early goings of the Week 5 game against his former team, the Las Vegas Raiders, Osemele suffered a gruesome injury. He was carted off the field after tearing tendons in both his left and right knee, ending his season and tenure with the Chiefs before it truly began.

Osemele has been hard at work on his 2021 comeback, consistently posting workout videos on his Instagram story. His latest video, shared by KSHB-TV producer Nick Jacobs, has many in Chiefs Kingdom yearning for his return.

If the Chiefs can clear Osemele of his injury, it might make sense for the team to bring him back on another one-year contract. The last one he signed only cost Kansas City just under $1.2 million against the salary cap. The difference that Osemele made in the first four weeks of 2020 is worthy of an attempt at an encore.

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