The financial details of different undrafted rookie signings have rolled in since the conclusion of the 2024 NFL Draft and the Kansas City Chiefs offered large salary guarantees to a few UDFAs that they really coveted.
According to KPRC2 NFL insider Aaron Wilson, one of those more substantial rookie agreements was used to secure Florida State defensive tackle Fabien Lovett. “[The] Chiefs signed defensive tackle Fabien Lovett to deal that includes [a] $10,000 signing bonus, $185,000 of base salary guaranteed, total $195,000 guarantees, per a source,” he informed.
And considering Kansas City’s lack of youth on the interior of the defensive line, Lovett has a decent chance of making the 53-man roster.
“It was a bit of a surprise when FSU defensive tackle Fabien Lovett was not selected in the 2024 NFL Draft,” Florida State reporter Curt Weiler noted with The Osceola on April 27.
Reasoning: “Lovett transferred in from Mississippi State ahead of Mike Norvell’s first season in 2020 and played a critical part in the middle of FSU’s defensive line throughout Norvell’s first four seasons leading the Seminoles.”
If you don’t take Weiler’s word for it, just look at the pre-draft scouting reports of NFL Network expert Lance Zierlein and Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder. Zierlein projected Lovett as a fifth-round prospect, while Holder predicted that a team would select him in round six or seven.
With a productive OTAs and training camp, it’s possible the Chiefs end up viewing Lovett as a UDFA steal and keep him as if he’s an extra draft pick.
New Chiefs DT Fabien Lovett Gives KC Opportunity to Make Up for Keondre Coburn Draft Miss
Last year, the Chiefs attempted to address the nose tackle position with Texas prospect Keondre Coburn in the draft. But that didn’t work out after two different stints inside the organization.
Instead, Kansas City has gone the veteran route at defensive tackle. They brought back Mike Pennel for the 2023-24 Super Bowl run — as well as the upcoming campaign — found reserves like Matt Dickerson and Isaiah Buggs on the waiver wire, extended Chris Jones this offseason and eventually reunited with players like Derrick Nnadi and Tershawn Wharton in free agency.
All in all, this has become a deep group. However, it’s not a young group.
Lovett has something all these other veterans do not, and that’s an age under 25. He’s also a 6-foot-4, 314-pound athlete that can hopefully be molded into a long-term replacement for Nnadi and Pennel.
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach had a rare draft miss with Coburn. Lovett could be his opportunity to make amends.
Chiefs UDFA Signing Fabien Lovett Praised as Run Defender But Struggles With ‘Consistency’
Circling back to Zierlein’s scouting report, he likened Lovett to former Chicago Bears nose tackle Eddie Goldman.
“Lovett is a wide-bodied, two-gapping impediment to running attacks looking to impose their will between the tackles,” the draft analyst wrote. “He blends long arms, big hands and a powerful lower half to withstand double-teams and leverage his gap with consistency.”
Continuing: “[Lovett] lacks the snap quickness to disrupt in gaps or attack the pocket as a rusher, so his blue-collar toughness can’t be quantified by box-score scouting. He understands his job is to bring the work to whomever may be in front of him.”
With Bleacher Report, Holder did argue that “consistency is arguably Fabien Lovett Sr.’s biggest issue.” Explaining: “He’ll have plays where he keeps his pads down and hands inside, allowing him to split double-teams and shed blocks, and he’ll have plays where he stands up out of his stance and exposes his chest with wide and late hands. He seems to tire easily, which could be the root cause of the issue.”
Despite that, Holder concluded that Lovett should make for a “quality run defender,” similar to Zierlein. The latter even voiced that the Seminole’s “run-plugging talent could create early playing time for him at nose for 4-3 or 3-4 stop units.”
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