Ryan Succop may be the Mr. Irrelevant of the 2009 NFL draft, but there’s nothing irrelevant about the role for which he’ll be auditioning. An inability to settle on a reliable kicker has been among the slew of problems bedeviling the Chiefs in recent years.

The 256th and last player drafted, Succop, who kicked at South Carolina, will receive the Lowsman Trophy during Mr. Irrelevant week in June at Newport Beach, Calif. This is an annual tongue-in-cheek tribute to whoever brings up the rear in the draft.

Why draft a kicker at all? Considering how many kickers wash out in their first pro tryouts, there’s a good case for instead trying an undrafted rookie, a kicker who’s been cut a few times, or a graybeard whose reliability may more than make up for diminishing leg strength.

Succop’s draft number becomes a lot less laughable once you consider that only one other kicker was picked — David Buehler from Southern California by the Cowboys in the fifth round. Succop joins incumbent Connor Barth in trying to stop a Chiefs’ merry-go-round of 10 field goal kickers over the last 15 years. They’ve had five kickers in just the last two years.

This is an unwelcome turn of events for a franchise that from 1967 through 1993 could depend on Jan Stenerud, the only pure kicker in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, or Nick Lowery.

Stenerud was picked for two AFL All-Star games, and he and Lowery while in Kansas City each made three Pro Bowls. The Chiefs haven’t had a Pro Bowl kicker since, and only Pete Stoyanovich, from 1996-2000, and Lawrence Tynes, from 2004-2006, have stayed here beyond two seasons.

Given the recent history of Chiefs kickers and that of general manager Scott Pioli in the draft, it’s not surprising that he selected Succop. In his second draft at New England, in 2001, Pioli drafted kicker Owen Pochman in the seventh round, even though the Patriots had stalwart Adam Vinatieri.

Five years later, the Patriots no longer had Vinatieri, a three-time Super Bowl hero, because he went to Indianapolis as a free agent. Given this huge hole to fill, Pioli in the fourth round of 2006 drafted Stephen Gostkowski. He was the AFC kicker in this year’s Pro Bowl.

Chiefs fans as much as anybody can appreciate the risk in drafting a kicker. Coach Herm Edwards sought a long-term answer in Justin Medlock, a fifth-round choice in 2007. But Medlock adjusted so poorly to NFL pressure that he was cut after the opening game, which started a parade of kickers. Perhaps Barth or Succop can end that parade.

Barth, an undrafted rookie, made 10 of 12 field-goal tries upon replacing Nick Novak, who lost the job by missing two of three tries in a 34-10 loss to the Titans last October. Succop brings impressive leg strength and boosted his pro stock during a strong junior year. But his accuracy was compromised last season by a small tear in his abdominal wall.

While you obviously can’t blame the Chiefs’ 4-12 and 2-14 finishes on their kickers, clearly a reliable leg could be worth at least a few victories once they become competitive.

Chiefs special teams coach Steve Hoffman has a track record of identifying and developing kickers and punters. Over two decades, he’s coached undrafted kickers — Chris Boniol and Richie Cunningham in Dallas and Dan Carpenter in Miami — into solid NFL performers. The Chiefs will be counting on him to perform an encore with Barth or Succop.

Succop won’t find quite as light an atmosphere at Arrowhead as he’ll experience as Mr. Irrelevant. The Chiefs just don’t have much to celebrate when it comes to kickers.

DRAFT HQ | Follow us on Twitter!