While things didn’t work as hoped for the Kansas City Chiefs, Breeland Speaks has been able to find some measure of success years after most fans had likely given up on him. Speaks found his footing in the UFL after proving unable to do so in the National Football League, and now he’s extending his impact in the developmental league with the news of his re-signing in Michigan.
The Michigan Panthers announced they’d re-signed Speaks for the upcoming UFL season on Tuesday.
Speaks will be familiar to Chiefs fans as a former second-round pick, and the first overall draft selection of general manager Brett Veach after taking over the role from John Dorsey. Speaks headed the miserable 2018 draft class for the Chiefs, in which Derrick Nnadi was the most impactful choice.
Brett Veach’s first draft choice is still applying plenty of pressure in the UFL.
While with Kansas City, Speaks was a sort of a tweener along the defensive front who never found his footing as the landscape changed around him. He was drafted into Bob Sutton’s defense, but defensive coordinator changes led to Steve Spagnuolo’s arrival and a new template was installed.
Speaks would never play a single snap for the Chiefs—or in the NFL—again after his rookie campaign, in which he played in all 16 games for K.C. He had 24 tackles and 1.5 sacks that year, and spent the entire next season on injured reserve.
It’s a bit surprising he wasn’t able to carve out any more reps in the NFL, given the constant need for pass rush help. That’s not to say there weren’t chances for Speaks. Several teams came calling after the Chiefs released him in 2020, including the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders, Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
After numerous stints on practice squads and offseason rosters, Speaks tried his hand in the UFL in 2023 with the Panthers and responded by leading the league in sacks with 9. In 2024, he led the league in sacks again (9.5) and won Defensive Player of the Year. Unfortunately, the 2025 season was largely spent on injured reserve.
Leave a Reply