KC Chiefs: Kansas City Star Says Chiefs Will Draft Tight End

With the NFL off season in full swing, mock drafts are floating around everywhere on the internet. Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star recently wrote up his second NFL mock draft and had the KC Chiefs sgoing with an interesting prospect in the first round.

Terez Paylor believes the Kansas City Chiefs will make a shocking selection in the first round, going with a tight end. The main reason this would be shocking is because the Chiefs really don’t need help at the tight end position whatsoever. Travis Kelce became one of the emerging stars for the Chiefs in 2014, and Anthony Fasano has been reliable for the two seasons he’s been in Kansas City.

"Yes, I know the Chiefs already have Travis Kelce. I love Kelce’s upside, too — he’s already a very good player and he still has room to grow. But Anthony Fasano isn’t getting any younger (he turns 31 this year), and as you know, Reid loves his two-tight end sets. I had a discussion with Reid where he’s waxed poetically about his days in Green Bay, when the Packers terrorized defenses with two Pro Bowl-caliber tight ends in Mark Chmura and Keith Jackson. So yes folks, there is absolutely room in the offense for Kelce and a player of Williams’ caliber."

Maxx Williams played at the University of Minnesota for two years and was an outstanding player for the Golden Gophers. He had an unbelievable catch and run against the Missouri Tigers in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl this past New Years and if people didn’t know his name beforehand, they certainly did afterwards.

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"Speaking of Williams, I already liked him based on the bits and pieces I saw of him this season, but he jumped off the tape in my recent film review. As a redshirt sophomore, he flashed an impressive combination of athleticism, aggressiveness and ball skills (he made multiple sensational catches in the games I watched). He needs to refine his route running but he is an emotional player who gets excited after big plays and is a very willing and aggressive blocker (often blocking to the whistle), though he sometimes slips off blocks because of a lack of strength. But guess what? He’s still young — he only turns 21 this year — and still has room to fill out his frame."

I have to say that I disagree with Paylor on this one. He has Jaelen Strong of Arizona State going with the very next pick to the Cleveland Browns, so why not go with a wide receiver? That is, after all, one of the Chiefs’ biggest needs this off season. Ereck Flowers of Miami would also be a decent pick and Paylor doesn’t have him going until the 25th pick. Flowers would fill a huge hole on the KC Chiefs’ horrendous offensive line.

There’s not really a good reason to take a tight end in the first round, as the Chiefs have both Kelce and Fasano. Kelce had a breakout “rookie” season (he was injured during his entire actual rookie season) and more than likely will only look even better in 2015. Taking a tight end in the first round when there are several other positions that need improvement would just be dumb in my opinion.

"I feel obligated to say I’m not crazy about the Chiefs taking the first-round receivers remaining on the board this early (Jaelen Strong, Devin Smith), though that could change as we go through the process. I need to see what kind of 40-yard dash Strong runs, and because he needs to improve his route running, I wonder about how he’d fit in Reid’s offense. I know Smith would fit — he’s an elite deep-ball threat — but he’s still raw in other facets of the game and is probably better suited to be a late-first or early-second-round pick."

Don’t get cute with this pick. Go wide receiver or offensive linemen and Kansas City Chiefs fans should be fairly content with the first round pick.

Next: KC Chiefs Focus On Offense In Mock Draft

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