Andy Reid broke into teaching within the school ranks, spending a decade on recruiting trails and visiting excessive faculties round America hoping to search out the subsequent nice offensive lineman. His remaining place within the collegiate ranks was at Missouri, which wasn’t an incredible workforce throughout Reid’s three seasons in Columbia. The now-two-time-Tremendous-Bowl-winning head coach helms the Present-Me State’s lone NFL franchise and dipped into his previous to assist make his future brighter two years in the past when the Chiefs chosen Nick Bolton with their first alternative of the 2021 NFL Draft at No. 58 total.

Bolton has been an integral a part of Kansas Metropolis’s protection since making the two-hour trek west from Mizzou to KC. As a rookie, Bolton had 112 tackles in 16 video games. This season, he was second within the NFL with 180. And no defensive participant on both workforce in Tremendous Bowl LVII had his identify known as by Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen greater than Bolton, who will flip 23 in March. Those that’ve watched Bolton since his arrival in Columbia have seen this potential. His game-high 9 tackles, fumble restoration, and ensuing landing are nothing new to those who have saved an in depth eye on him. He’s prepared for the third-year glow-up.

Being in the proper place on the proper time extra incessantly than anybody else is a ability. Let’s not overlook Bolton most likely ought to’ve had two scoops and scores in opposition to the Eagles. Miles Sanders did catch the ball earlier than getting hit and the ball coming unfastened. With two defensive touchdowns, Bolton may’ve given Patrick Mahomes a run for the sport’s MVP award. To be this good, this younger at any place means an enormous contract is coming down the road. Bolton simply completed yr No. 2 on his 4-year rookie contract. I’d think about the Chiefs need to lock him in for a very long time earlier than Bolton’s tempted by free company, so he’ll receives a commission by the tip of the 2024 season.

Bolton didn’t even begin his first yr at Missouri, behind Terez Corridor and Cale Garrett, who each have frolicked on NFL observe squads. In Corridor’s case, he’s spent a number of video games on the Patriots’ lively roster. In 2019, as I joined the Mizzou beat full-time, Bolton bought his beginning spot subsequent to Garrett. Over the subsequent two seasons, Bolton developed into among the best defensive gamers in school soccer’s greatest convention. Positive, he didn’t play for a workforce competing for nationwide championships, however anybody watching your entire Southeastern Convention, as any good NFL scout ought to, may’ve seen his next-level expertise from a mile away.

It’s an indictment of the Chiefs after the 2020 season that they wanted a second-round decide to play as the center of their protection. At Bolton’s professional day in March 2021, Kansas Metropolis’s presence was evident. There was a ton of momentum behind maintaining Bolton in state. To these on the beat, high-profile gamers discovering the proper residence at all times by some means made extra sense than any of us realized. After Gary Kubiak and John Elway appeared in Missouri’s press field throughout the 2018 season, it ought to’ve been apparent Drew Lock was going to be chosen by the Broncos. When tons of Kansas Metropolis media paid further consideration to Bolton’s professional day than the same old crop of Tigers’ prospects, that ought to’ve been a giveaway. And the Present-Me State has been nice to Bolton, primarily as a result of he’s been nice to its solely NFL and FBS groups.

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The Chiefs’ defense will always be a secondary act as long as one of the best quarterbacks of all time is on the roster. Its main goal: let’s not give up enough points to where even Mahomes can’t save our butts. It’s the world’s best safety net, but still, one that can’t be messed with. Despite Travis Kelce’s assertion that many people doubted Kansas City coming into this season, who were those people? Surely they didn’t know the game of football because the Chiefs had hosted four straight AFC Championship games with the same core roster. Next season, there’s no reason Kansas City can’t make it six in a row. Yes, that’s mainly because of Mahomes. But take a note from Eric Stonestreet, the Emmy Award-winning Kansas Metropolis, Kansas native and die-hard Chiefs fan. In a postgame interview with Fox Sports activities, he went out of his solution to shout out Bolton for his play. Each different Chiefs fan ought to do the identical.