The Kansas City Chiefs are closing in on training camp. The team should be deep into internal evaluations of the offseason roster before heading to St. Joseph.
The Chiefs addressed several positions this offseason, but linebacker was not one of them.
Kansas City lost its standout strong-side linebacker, Leo Chenal, in free agency, and did not do much in the offseason to replace his role in the defense.
Chenal missed the last few games of the 2025 regular season, and the man to take his place was undrafted
rookie Cooper McDonald.
McDonald played in all 17 games for Kansas City and was on the field for 69% of special-teams snaps before receiving significantly more playing time in the season’s final two games.
The lack of action at this position in the offseason could indicate the team is interested in giving McDonald a larger role in 2026 if he continues to improve.
The good
McDonald proved to be a physical player around the line of scrimmage in the limited snaps he played in 2025. Used primarily as a strong side linebacker and end of line walk-up player, McDonald often squared up with tight ends and fullbacks.
On the snap, McDonald fires into the chest of the left side tight end, displacing him from the line of scrimmage and helping to take away the running back’s lane. As the back tries to squeeze through the hole, McDonald disengages and helps force the tackle for a loss.
Standing 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighing 240 pounds, Cooper is built sturdily, but he also has good lateral mobility that helps him make plays along the sideline.
Showing good play strength, as well as quickness, McDonald fights through the tight end’s reach block to help make a stop on the end-around play and prevent a big gain.
When playing off the ball, McDonald showed promise against the run.
On the snap, McDonald quickly reads run and charges full steam ahead to take on the fullback and attempt to plug up the running lane before it can get going. Squaring up the linebacker, McDonald does a good job of slipping past the block and ensures that the running back does not have anywhere to go.
In a game predicated on winning one-on-one matchups, McDonald has the physicality needed to compete.
Where to improve
A strong player in simplified situations, McDonald still has a way to go in his overall play processing and in his performance across all phases of the defense.
When observing his game, there are instances where it is apparent that he is still mentally processing plays, and this has, at times, led to him being a step slow off the snap.
At this time, McDonald is also a fairly one-dimensional player and offers little in pass coverage.
With plenty to improve on, McDonald will enter training camp this season with an excellent opportunity to compete his way into a larger role in 2026.
2026 projection
The Chiefs have had different players take on the “walk-up” role or play the end-of-line position where McDonald was placed for most of his defensive snaps last season. Chenal was the most recent to take on this role and the most talented, but this role has been in the Chiefs’ defense since Steve Spagnuolo took over as defensive coordinator in 2019.
Having played close to 70% of special teams snaps in 2025, he likely will not have to worry about making the roster this season, and this is especially so with the state of the Chiefs’ linebacker room.
With the departure of Chenal, the Chiefs have a depth issue, with only Nick Bolton and Drue Tranquill having experience with a high percentage of snaps. Every other player on the roster lacks the NFL playing time needed for the Chiefs to lock in players to roster spots, but McDonald stands out as one of the few who fit the true strong-side linebacker role.
With his special-teams prowess and physical capabilities as a strong run defender, it appears the Chiefs are grooming McDonald to take over the role for the foreseeable future. If he can pan out and find a consistent role in 2026, it will be a testament to the organization’s developmental abilities, as well as McDonald’s dedication to helping the team re-gain it’s championship footing this season.
