To conclude the first week of organized team activities (OTAs), Andy Reid dusted off one of his old lines regarding the acquisition of defensive tackle Jarran Reed.

“He doesn’t spell his name quite right,” Andy Reid said, “but he sure plays right.”

Reid then alluded to the fact that his quasi-namesake not only will stunt and loop with Chris Jones, but also — as has been speculated — could free up Jones to play some defensive end. 

“It gives us some flexibility with what we can do with Chris,” Reid said.

It also should give the Chiefs three strong pass rushers — Reed, Jones and Frank Clark — on the field at once.

That would hearken back to Steve Spagnuolo’s NASCAR package, which employed New York Giants pass rushers Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora at the same time. The current Chiefs defensive coordinator used that while orchestrating a Super Bowl-winning defense in New York.

And strong seasons from Reed, Jones and Clark could help compensate for the departures of defensive ends Alex Okafor and Tanoh Kpassagnon, who signed a two-year, $4.5 million with the New Orleans Saints.

Reed, who has 19 sacks the last three years, should bolster a Chiefs pass rush that dropped to 19th in the NFL with just 32 sacks in 2020 after finishing the 2019 regular season with 45 sacks, which ranked 11th.

Another factor could be getting fans back at full capacity at Arrowhead Stadium. The raucous fans can make it difficult for the offense to hear the quarterback’s snap and give the Chiefs pass rushers a jump at the line of scrimmage.  

Though the 6-3, 306-pound Reed has become a good pass rusher, he entered the NFL out of Alabama with a reputation as a run stuffer.

That could help the Chiefs with another major issue last year — limiting opposing offenses once they reach the Kansas City 20-yard line.

“If we’re able to make teams throw the ball in the end zone instead of running the football in,” safety Tyrann Mathieu said, “that’s going to give our team a greater chance to win.” 

Mathieu said the team had been harping on that approach. In fact, the Chiefs made sure to practice red zone defense during the first two days of OTAs.

Linebacker Anthony Hitchens said the red zone problems in 2020 were a result of not only physical issues, but also mental ones like missing assignments or being in the wrong scheme.

“We fell short in the red zone,” linebacker Anthony Hitchens said. “We were top 10 the year we won the Super Bowl, and then last year we were 32nd.”

If Reed returns the red-zone defense to the levels of 2019, his deal for one-year, $5.5 million will prove to be of great value.

“That signing right there was a really good get,” Reid said, “and I think will pay off for us in a real big way this season.”

One already could deem the Reed acquisition a bargain, considering the Seattle Seahawks thought highly enough of him that they signed him to a two-year, $23 million extension in March of 2020 before releasing him almost a year to the day of signing that deal in a move that cleared more than $8 million in cap space.

Though Reed had just two sacks in 2019 after serving an NFL-mandated, six-game suspension for an alleged assault, he was at his best the previous season, recording 10.5 sacks while starting 16 games in 2018.

It’s that potential the Chiefs hope to tap into.

“I’m excited to see him once we kick this thing off,” Reid said.