ChiefsPlanet - Chiefs Dee Ford is not satisfied

His second season behind him, Dee Ford isn’t shy about sharing a self-assessment of his performance to date as a Chiefs outside linebacker.

The 2014 first-rounder played more in 2015 than he did as a rookie, and made more of an impact, too. But when asked if he’d had a good season, Ford frowned.

“No,” Ford said, flatly. “Man, look — I know what I can do. I know what I can bring to the table. I know my expectations. And until I get that done, I’m not going to be satisfied.”

Ford, who turned 25 this month, finished the season with 23 tackles and four sacks in 14 games (including five starts) in 565 defensive snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. Those numbers easily surpassed his 2014 output, when he recorded eight tackles and 1 1/2 sacks playing roughly 9 percent of the Chiefs’ defensive snaps.

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“I played,” Ford said. “I made the 53-man roster. I played another year with two of the best linebackers in the world. I have one of the best position coaches in the world, one of the best staffs in the world, best organizations in the world. I’m blessed. But I’m not satisfied.”

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The Chiefs hope not, because Ford — who is listed at 6 feet 2 and 252 pounds — might be forced to play an even bigger role this year, especially since there’s some doubt about the overall availability of the two Pro Bowlers ahead of him, Tamba Hali and Justin Houston.

While Hali continues to battle creaky knees (which held him out of practice during most of 2015), Houston’s status for the 2016 season is somewhat in doubt. He recently underwent ACL surgery that the team projects could keep him out 6-12 months.

“I think the one thing we came out of this past season with was (that) Dee Ford’s a pretty good football player,” coach Andy Reid said.

Chiefs general manager John Dorsey also saw growth in Ford this season.

“I saw confidence, I saw the ability to set the edge, make plays in the run when he had to,” Dorsey said. “I saw him have the ability to pressure the quarterback.”

But there’s no arguing Ford has room for improvement, largely when it comes to implementing his pass-rush moves. He still possesses superb burst off the snap, which he uses for his go-to speed-rush, but to become a complete and consistent pass rusher, he’ll need to chain multiple moves and counters together to keep opposing tackles off-balance.

“As you grow and get experience, you have to now learn how to use multiple pass-rush moves,” Dorsey said. “It’s just not one or two; now you have to do combinations. And, as we go forward here with (linebackers coach) Gary (Gibbs), he’ll begin to develop those multiple moves that it takes, that the good ones have.”

Ford, to his credit, said he understands that. And he insists he puts in the offseason work necessary to improve as a player.

“I work hard, and I don’t put that out there, because it doesn’t matter at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter in the eyes of the public,” Ford said. “You can tell people all the time how hard you work — if you don’t put the results on the field, it doesn’t matter.”

Ford expressed optimism that he’s improved both as a run defender and in his understanding of concepts as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense, a position that was foreign to him after he spent his entire college career as a 4-3 defensive end, with his hand in the dirt.

“Oh, I’ve come far,” Ford said. “My eyes (have improved), but it’s really just getting a feel for it, because you see different looks on the field. Where my deal was, I was so comfortable seeing things my offense did in the offseason, training camp, but you’re only going to get so many looks in the preseason. And then once it gets to the regular season, I’m hit with new things.

“That was kind of something that worked against me; I needed to be allowed to mess up, but we were trying to win — we have two Pro Bowlers in front of me, so the expectation is no mess-ups. You grow from things you mess up from. And when Justin went down, I messed up on things that people don’t know about, and I grew from it and I was able to make plays off it.”

Now, Ford needs to continue to make progress and take the next step. Even if Houston returns in time for the season, Ford’s continued growth will allow the Chiefs to save Hali’s knees for crucial moments and give Houston an occasional breather.

“At this stage,” Hali said, “if I had to speak for him, I would like for him to take the next step in being a professional ... basically (the reason) why they drafted him here is to take over the (starting) role. The season’s too long for me to focus on being a starter or a backup. I mean, we all have to contribute.

“But I think he’s in the position where he can kind of take the torch and go forward. That’s really mental; physically, the kid is gifted and he has it. But mentally we have to just make sure that he understands why we’re in this building and what needs to be done while we’re here.”

The Chiefs will be watching Ford closely during this spring’s organized team activities and the preseason to see if he does just that.

“He’s a first-round pick; 50 percent of them end up playing, and 50 percent of them don’t,” Reid said. “And most of them take a year or two to get going. So you’ve seen the improvement every year. I’m expecting it to take another jump forward.

“But the one thing we know is he’s got that potential.”

Terez A. Paylor: 816-234-4489, @TerezPaylor. Download Red Zone Extra, The Star’s Chiefs app.

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