Arrowhead Pride
What should we expect from Kansas City this weekend?
As we near the start of the NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs have kept their draft intentions close to the vest.
National analysts seem to alternate between mocking wide receivers or second-tier offensive tackles for Kansas City. Of course, that could be exactly what general manager Brett Veach would want if he was eying a cornerback to replace L’Jarius Sneed’s departure last month or a defensive tackle under rookie control to pair with superstar Chris Jones.
Regardless of the directions the Chiefs go across the draft’s three days, here are some predictions we can make based on recent history.
Due to multiple trades, the only sample of Veach’s first-round philosophy during his first four drafts was selecting running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire out of LSU with the 32nd selection in 2020. The decision instantly underwhelmed, as Edwards-Helaire’s less-than-ideal athletic testing for a first-round running back proved predictive of his limitations as a pro.
In Veach’s last two drafts, however, he has made three first-round selections: cornerback Trent McDuffie and defensive ends George Karlaftis and Felix Anudike-Uzomah. Per Kent Lee Platte’s Relative Athletic Score, the trio all topped the 87th percentile for athletic testing at their positions. While immediate returns on Anudike-Uzomah were middling, McDuffie and Karlaftis have quickly become among the league’s best defensive players.
Assuming the Chiefs stay in the first round, expect them to again swing on a high-ceiling prospect.
On a football team, certain rooms need more raw numbers to ensure depth. Most teams roster at least nine offensive linemen, defensive linemen, and defensive backs. Positional flexibility for all three rooms is a prerequisite for successful backups.
In each of his six drafts as Kansas City’s general manager, Veach has seemed to highlight one of these position groups as needing depth — and devote multiple draft picks to addressing it. While the results were not always fruitful, he took multiple defensive line players in 2018 and 2023.
The secondary has been the more frequent multiple swings recipient. While the success of the five defensive backs drafted in 2022 is fresh in our minds, Veach also made multiple moves to reinforce the secondary in 2019, 2020, and 2023.
In 2021, the Chiefs drafted center Creed Humphrey and guard Trey Smith — who now have a combined 101 NFL starts. While two of Veach’s most successful draft picks, both now enter the final seasons of their rookie contracts, meaning at least one is likely to play for a new team in 2025. With Kansas City currently having only eight offensive linemen under contract — well short of the depth needed for offseason practices and training camp — expect Veach to give their room the heavy draft treatment for a second time.
NFL teams are allowed to host 30 prospects at...
