For those who follow our content and read our profiles, you’ll know that Jaden Hicks was not a prospect we were particularly high on. We were under the belief that conceptually he doesn’t really understand the game. It’s pretty heavily read-and-react without any sort of alarm in his head that this may not be where the ball is actually going. 

The first reason we think that Hicks and the Chiefs are a great marriage is because there’s no pressure on Hicks to start immediately. They have vet Justin Reid, 2022 2nd Round pick Bryan Cook, and 2023 4th Round pick Chamarri Conner at the safety spot. Those three players should allow ample time for Hicks to sit and develop the way he needs to.

The second reason why we think this is a great fit is actually because of new teammate Bryan Cook. When we scouted Cook back in our first year as The Gridiron Review, we had thought of Cook in a similar light to Hicks. We thought Cook could start early in his career, but was definitely going to be drafted more for the upside. 

The third and really final reason we think this is a great fit is because the Chiefs do a good job developing DBs mixed with Spags scheme: Watson, Williams, McDuffie, Cook are all DBs that the Chiefs have done a phenomenal job of developing and getting the most out of.

We described Hicks in the following ways in his profile: Hicks is a raw, aggressive, high motor/high effort player, who blitzes relentlessly and who can play pretty good man coverage. That’s about as close to describing Spags defense as you can get. He may not be a three down starter for a bit, but Spags drafted him with a role in mind as a rookie.