Chiefs Cut 2 CBs Amid Injuries, Sign 3 Players Including Ex-Raiders CB: Report

The Kansas City Chiefs showed up at training camp on Friday, August 1, with a trio of new faces in uniform after several cuts and signings.

Chiefs Digest beat reporter Matt Derrick relayed the “full list of Chiefs transactions” on X.

“Signed: CB Ajani Carter, CB Azizi Hearn and WR Key’Shawn Smith,” he noted. “Waived injured: CB Darius Rush and CB Eric Scott.”

As alluded to by the injury cut, Rush and Scott were both banged up at training camp, and the Chiefs need more healthy bodies on the field. Of the three newcomers, Hearn notably spent the 2023 preseason with the AFC West rival Las Vegas Raiders.

On top of those five newer roster moves, which included the Eddie Czaplicki cut at punter, KC Star beat reporter Jesse Newell clarified an “inaccurate” signing report from a couple of days ago.

“Also, the previous Twitter report of former Chiefs WR Kwamie Lassiter II signing with the Chiefs in recent days was inaccurate,” Newell said. Adding: “He’s not here today.”

Lassiter, like Carter and Hearn, was among Wednesday’s tryouts, and it was reported by multiple parties that he was signing in KC. However, it seems the Chiefs chose not to sign Lassiter, signing a Thursday wide receiver workout (Smith) instead.

More on Chiefs Training Camp Signings Azizi Hearn, Ajani Carter & Key’Shawn Smith

As noted above, all three of the new signings earned their way onto the 91-man roster (including a lone international player) at a tryout this week. Their presence is mainly to fill the void created by training camp injuries at CB and WR, but it’s also an opportunity for each of these players to make a bid for a practice squad role.

Hearn has the most NFL experience of the three; meanwhile, Carter and Smith were both playing college ball last season. They both entered the league as undrafted free agents.

Splitting his time between Miami and SMU, Smith accumulated 1,581 receiving yards and 13 receiving touchdowns over five years of college. His best season came in 2024, when he posted 33 receptions for 527 yards and 5 touchdowns with SMU.

Kansas City has a strong history with SMU wide receivers — looking at you, Rashee Rice — so it makes sense to dip into that well again.

Hearn bounced around college programs from 2017 through 2022, spending time at Arizona, Wyoming and UCLA. He started the most games for Wyoming of the three (29 starts).

As mentioned above, Hearn spent his first NFL training camp and preseason with the Raiders, and his second was with the New England Patriots. He has yet to appear in a regular season game, and he’s also received opportunities with the Carolina Panthers and New York Giants’ practice squads.

Finally, Carter is a UDFA out of Houston and Utah State. He logged 4 interceptions over four seasons at Utah State from 2019 through 2022 and did not play for a team in 2023.

During his final collegiate season at Houston, Carter was credited with “one-or-no receptions allowed in six of 11 games.”

Chiefs’ Darius Rush & Eric Scott Jr. Fliers End in Roster Cuts

Chiefs fans are well aware of how often KC general manager Brett Veach likes to take fliers on former draft picks. This strategy has worked on occasion, but more often than not, these ex-draft busts are available for a reason.

In the case of Rush and Scott, these fliers did not work out.

Scott was a former sixth-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys who hit waivers after his second training camp, while Rush is a former fifth-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts who was cut following his rookie training camp.

This was actually Rush’s second stint with the Chiefs, who claimed him back in 2023. The athletic DB managed to find a niche role in Pittsburgh for a total of five games from 2023 through 2024 after that, but has yet to truly live up to his draft status overall.