The Kansas City Chiefs had a few players leave the organization after they were cut at the 53-man deadline — although it’s unclear if KC offered them a practice squad spot or not.
The first big-name departure was rugby star Louis Rees-Zammit, who finalized a signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars practice squad on August 29. But there were other notable players missing from the initial Chiefs practice squad after waiver claims cleared on Wednesday.
Quite possibly the two biggest head-scratchers being second-year running back Deneric Prince and cornerback draft pick Kamal Hadden.
Although there was no official word on Prince or Hadden early on, p-squad deals for Keaontay Ingram and Emani Bailey (now released) at running back and Keith Taylor and eventually Nic Jones at cornerback signaled that both were unlikely to return. The next questions being where they would end up? And what caused them to exit stage right?
The latter will have to wait as the Chiefs are typically hush-hush about this sort of stuff, but the answer to question number one was revealed on August 30 when Prince signed a contract with the Miami Dolphins practice squad and Hadden latched on with the Green Bay Packers at the same level.
KPRC 2 NFL insider Aaron Wilson reported Hadden’s practice squad deal, while Prince’s was announced by the Dolphins themselves.
Did Deneric Prince Snub Chiefs’ Practice Squad Offer After Back-to-Back Cuts?
When Prince first came to Kansas City as a priority UDFA, he specifically noted that he chose the Chiefs because they had a plan for his development and usage.
That spring and early summer, Prince was hot out of the gates, looking to steal a 53-man roster spot as a rookie. Things shifted during the preseason, however, as the first-year ball carrier displayed glaring weaknesses in pass protection and field vision.
In the end, Prince was cut as the Chiefs elected to stick with a veteran room. He accepted a place on the practice squad that year and was elevated three times (playing twice). Prince never touched the field on offense though, logging just 15 snaps on special teams in what was basically a redshirt campaign.
In a make-or-break second offseason, the spring and summer went very similarly for the youngster. He started hot and looked like a lock for the Week 1 roster, then petered out during the preseason again — this time being beat out by standout rookie Carson Steele.
It would make sense that the Chiefs offered Prince a practice squad role for the second straight year. He was the fourth RB on the depth chart before Samaje Perine entered the fold and he was much farther along than both Ingram and Bailey.
Having said that, Prince seemed to have his eye on a real active role in 2024, and he came up short. It’s possible that fact alone led him to seek a fresh start in Miami.
Chiefs’ Kamal Hadden Draft Pick Reminiscent of Keondre Coburn
The Hadden selection in this year’s sixth round was eerily similar to 2023 rookie Keondre Coburn.
Like the sixth-round defensive tackle out of Texas, Hadden was pegged as a late-round “sleeper” after the draft. Both were then nonexistent during training camp and the preseason.
Perhaps these were just rare misses by general manager Brett Veach and head coach Andy Reid, or maybe the two prospects just failed to figure out KC’s defensive system. It’s hard to say what went so wrong so quickly.
Then again, Coburn is currently on the active roster of the Tennessee Titans, so he managed to salvage his career after a couple of early cuts. Maybe Hadden can do the same in Green Bay.
This article was originally published on Heavy.com
