ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — Every slideshow shown in team meetings since Drue Tranquill joined the Kansas City Chiefs opens with the same image — a Super Bowl ring.
It serves equal parts as a reminder of where the franchise has been and the goal ahead as the 2023 season journey commences.
Tranquill, who signed with the Chiefs in the offseason after watching them win two Super Bowls in his first four NFL seasons with the AFC West rival Los Angeles Chargers, welcomes the pressure that comes with being the champs.
“As a competitor, your ideal dream is to be a world champion,” Tranquill said. “A lot of these guys in this locker room have done that, so I’m excited to join up with them, learn from them and be a part of this championship culture. As Coach (Andy) Reid says, anybody can do it one time, but going back-to-back sets you apart. That’s what we’re after. We’ve got to keep a chip on our shoulder this year, because obviously everybody’s going to be out to get us.”
It’s been nearly two decades since a team — the 2003-04 New England Patriots — repeated as Super Bowl champions.
Tranquill enjoyed a breakout season with the Chargers last year. He racked up 146 tackles, including 10 for a loss, with five sacks, eight quarterback hits and four passes defended — all career-highs.
The Indiana native and former fourth-round pick from Notre Dame also had his first career interception and forced fumble last season.
Tranquill’s career year made him a relatively hot commodity on the free-agent market.
“At any given time, there were probably 10 or 11 teams involved,” he said. “As dominoes fell, that shrunk. But there were about five or six teams that last day I was choosing between.”
Tranquill felt most comfortable with GM Brett Veach, Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo in the end and decided to come to Kansas City.
“I felt really valued here,” Tranquill said. “I thought they were going to use a lot of my strengths, maximize me as a player here. That excited me and ultimately led to my decision.”
The Chiefs covet his coverage skills, pass-rushing ability, run defense and positional versatility. He’s played all three linebacker spots during the offseason and is middle linebacker Nick Bolton’s backup as the “green dot,” the player who relays defensive calls from the coaching staff to his teammates.
“It’s nice to have guys like that who can do more than one thing,” Spagnuolo said. “... It’s all new to him as far as verbiage and the system, so that tells you that he’s pretty intelligent if playing that many spots this early.”
Not that it’s been easy, but Tranquill’s a deep thinker as evidenced by his Chess.com BlitzChamps II charity chess tournament title in June.
“It’s certainly different than the defense that I played when I was in LA,” Tranquill said. “But football is football and you pick up on things as you go throughout your career.”
Tranquill’s intangibles — intelligence, leadership and instincts — combined with his physical skills made for a good match with Spagnuolo’s relatively complex scheme.
“They saw those, they affirmed those in me throughout the process and I certainly agreed with them,” Tranquill said. “It felt like the best play for me.”
Camp with the Chiefs has been tougher than the last four training camps with the Chargers, he said, but the winning mentality is, too.
“It’s just hyper competitive around here,” Tranquill said. “Winning is absolutely everything. It’s kind of egos aside; winning is the ultimate goal.”
Spagnuolo will adjust the scheme some days “just to try to fool Patrick to win this day at practice,” Tranquill said. “Winning is everything to them and you certainly see that in the amount of close games they win on a year in and year out basis.”
There are days “feels like a turtle walking off the field, slow and steady,” but he’s ready for the payoff — especially Oct. 22 at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium and Week 18 at SoFI Stadium, when Tranquill’s new team (Chiefs) will meet his old team (Chargers).
“Yes, sir,” Tranquill said with a grin. “I can’t wait to play them.”
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