Chiefs GM Brett Veach Breaks Silence on Joe Thuney Trade

The Kansas City Chiefs kicked off the 2025 offseason with a bang, trading two-time first-team All-Pro guard Joe Thuney weeks after teammates voted him KC MVP.

Chiefs general manager Brett Veach finally addressed this bold move publicly on April 17 while speaking ahead of the NFL draft. And his explanation for trading Thuney centered around a lack of available cap space — as most assumed.

“I think we knew early on in free agency… what we were facing,” Veach acknowledged, in terms of not spending a ton of money on outside additions. He cited upcoming extension talks with right guard Trey Smith, cornerback Trent McDuffie and defensive end George Karlaftis as reasons for this.

“But to your point, as the years go on and we hope to keep this winning tradition up and have sustained success, it only becomes more difficult,” Veach continued. “Knew early on that we would be limited and that was obviously the reason why we had to make that trade with Chicago with Thuney.”

“I mean, that was a player that we loved, and it was gut-wrenching that we had to do that,” he added, “but you had to do it. And so, you’re only going to have a limited opportunity to do some things [in free agency]. We tried to cover up some of the holes in regard to just some stability at left tackle, [plus] corner depth is always a big need and they’re two prime positions that always go high in the draft.”

Veach was obviously referring to the Jaylon Moore and Kristian Fulton signings in his response.

Chiefs GM Brett Veach Says KC Still Open to Drafting Another Left Tackle After Jaylon Moore Signing

Many draft experts still have Veach and the Chiefs drafting another offensive tackle early in 2025, despite the Thuney trade which allowed them to sign Moore (at LT) and franchise tag Smith (at RG).

Veach confirmed that there is some truth to that rumor on April 17, noting that they’re still very open to drafting another left tackle.

“O-Line and D-Line. I mean, if all things are equal, you’re gonna always defer to that and you’re gonna continue to build [the] lines,” the Chiefs GM told reporters. “And so, like I said, with Jawaan [Taylor] being toward the tail end of his contract, and Jaylon [Moore] being on a smaller contract, these years pass by quick and before you know, we’ll be sitting here talking on a zoom before the 2026 draft. So, can never have enough of these guys.”

To be clear, that statement doesn’t guarantee that the Chiefs will draft OL or DL in round one. It just reaffirms that both positions are certainly on the table as options.

Looking at Kansas City’s roster depth at the more premier positions, you might even say the trenches are their two greatest needs after free agency.

Chiefs Could Be Underestimating Joe Thuney Loss

Although “gut-wrenching” is a pretty strong adjective, it does feel like the Chiefs might be underestimating Thuney’s departure — at least a little bit.

Assuming Kingsley Suamataia, Mike Caliendo or Hunter Nourzad will just step and hold down the fort at LG next to another inexperienced starter in Moore just feels like a major risk. And while finances were tight, the Chiefs also saw no issue with spending some money on a wide receiver like Hollywood Brown — who was basically awarded a rare do-over after his previous one-year contract was a bust.

Along with Brown, Smith, Moore and Fulton, KC also prioritized retaining linebacker Nick Bolton over Thuney. In each of these cases — and in the case of departures Justin Reid and Derrick Nnadi — Veach chose to prioritize younger free agents who are entering their prime. With the exception being Brown.

With all that in mind, the consistency and versatility of Thuney will be difficult to replicate. We’ll see if trading the future Hall of Famer away comes back to bite the Chiefs in 2025.