Kansas City Chiefs get an A- draft grade
By Chris Taylor
The draft grades for the Kansas City Chiefs are all over the place, with some analysts clearly unaware of how the Chiefs operate. This will clear things up.
If you happen to get your sports news from multiple sources, and I hope you do, You probably have no idea at how good or how bad the Kansas City Chiefs did during the 2018 NFL Draft. After careful analyzation of the draft and the experts that graded them, I give you an optimistic, yet realistic grade of my own.
An A- may seem like a bit of a stretch to some, but as you read along you will learn how the impressive grade came about. The Kansas City Chiefs did exactly what they wanted and needed to do during this draft. They needed to address the defensive side of the ball and that is exactly what they did, with every single pick.
It is important to understand how the Chiefs operate defensively. They have routinely rotated players into different positions, developing a somewhat hybrid style defense. In a draft full of hybrid style players, Kansas City is set to make some defensive noise during the 2018 season. A season which will be dominated by the potential of the offense.
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Overall grade: A-
The Chiefs needed defensive bodies, now they have them. There is a good possibility that five of the six players taken see significant time on the playing field this season, which brings value to the grade immediately.
Kansas City needed help at the defensive end position, they have it. Another position of need was the outside linebacker spot opposite of Justin Houston. Check. The Chiefs needed safety help and they found it. A run stopping nose tackle was a huge concern, they found their guy there. Depth at the cornerback position was a must issue that the Chiefs needed to address, and they did so.
Kudos to Brett Veach for not straying away from the needs his team required. Another reason for this grade to be as high as I have it comes with the recent success the Chiefs have had in their past five drafts. They rank 2nd according to The New York Post.
There are some that will be quick to say current Browns general manager John Dorsey is the reason for that, but keep in mind that Veach was the director of player personnel during that time. He most definitely had a hand in choosing who the Chiefs were drafting.
The Chiefs didn’t have a first-round pick due to the trade in last years draft to move up for Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes would have likely gone first this year if he was thrown into the current mix of rookie quarterbacks. It’s hard not to consider this fact. The grade may have been higher if the players picked were true to their position. This is an experiment. One that might work wonders for the defense as it appears they are going to be throwing a plethora of looks at opposing offenses.