Kansas City Chiefs starting right tackle Jawaan Taylor has built a reputation for his lightning-quick release off the line — a skill that earned him an $80 million contract with the team two offseasons ago. But with that speed has come a tendency to jump too early, leading to a wave of penalties that have frustrated fans and drawn increased scrutiny from the officials.
After leading the NFL in offensive line penalties with 19 flags last season, Taylor’s struggles have continued into this year, with five penalties — four of them false starts — through the first four games.
During Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Taylor was flagged three times, including two false starts. When asked about his penalties, the 26-year-old tackle responded succinctly.
“Just getting off early, that’s all it was,” Taylor explained.
Taylor’s penalty issues stand out even more, given how relatively disciplined the Chiefs have been overall. Kansas City has been penalized just 21 times this season — among the lowest in the NFL — but nearly a quarter of those have come from Taylor. His four false starts are tied for the second-most in the league, according to Pro Football Reference, making it clear that his bad habit is becoming a problem that he acknowledges needs to be addressed.
“Just keep honing in on it,” Taylor emphasized. “Locking in on it and making sure I’m on time and not early.”
While his early jumps have caught the attention of officials, Taylor insists that he doesn’t feel targeted by referees. Instead, he believes the refs have done a fair job officiating his unique release.
“It doesn’t vary,” Taylor said when asked if different officiating crews approach him differently. “I feel like all the officiating crews do a great job with it, watching me. We talk between TV timeouts about some things, and I feel like I do a good job.”
Taylor also tries to take a proactive approach with the officials, revealing that he maintains open communication with them during games in an effort to ensure he can correct any issues on the fly.
“I definitely feel like they’re doing a great job,” Taylor shared. “If I have a time where I am a little early, they’ll tell me about it, and we’ll just talk and communicate throughout the game.”
While Taylor is trying to improve his timing, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid clarified that the false starts must stop. Reid remains confident in Taylor’s ability to adjust but was blunt when addressing the issue after practice on Thursday.
“He’s got to fix it; that’s the bottom line,” Reid stated. “He’s very quick off the ball and takes a lot of pride in that, but you’ve got to make sure you’re not offsides. He’s got to take care of that part, and he will.”