KC Chiefs select Mecole Hardman with 56th pick in 2019 NFL Draft
The KC Chiefs traded up from pick 61 to pick 56 to nab Mecole Hardman out of Georgia. Hardman is a wide receiver with tremendous speed.
Well, after a week filled with unfortunate news, the Kansas City Chiefs needed to consider adding a wide receiver in the 2019 NFL Draft. That they did, as Mecole Hardman is the newest member of the Chiefs.
The team had picks 61 and 63, but the Chiefs opted to swap picks with the Rams and took Hardman with their first pick in the draft.
Hardman very well could be the replacement for Tyreek Hill (as the analysts on NFL Network noted) and he spent the last three years at Georgia. He totaled 60 receptions for 961 yards with 11 touchdowns during that time and also totaled two rushing touchdowns.
New Chiefs WR Mecole Hardman has seen an 85.2 passer rating when targeted since 2017 pic.twitter.com/n8bxTajbTD
— PFF (@PFF) April 27, 2019
So I wrote in January after the loss to the Patriots that I thought the Chiefs would draft an eventual replacement for Hill instead of paying him down the road. Of course events this week sped that up but this isn't too surprising.
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) April 27, 2019
Hardman is a very similar player to Hill in his size and the fact that he’s fast, which sends a message from the organization after the events that surfaced this week.
The stats aren’t mind-blowing, but Hardman provides a position of need for the Chiefs. Some fans might be surprised that the team opted to address offense over defense considering how poorly the defense performed last season, but with the events unfolding this week, this pick made sense.
Hardman and Sammy Watkins could be the top two receivers in 2019 with Demarcus Robinson, Gehrig Dieter, and hopefully Byron Pringle sprinkled in there as well.
Patrick Mahomes loves to spread the football around and it shouldn’t be difficult for him and Hardman to get on the same page.
The Chiefs lost Chris Conley, another Georgia receiver, to free agency this offseason, making the need for depth at the wide receiver position even greater. Hardman might not have been the most well-known name remaining on the board, but he provides tremendous upside for this team and should be able to work his way into one of the best receivers on the team.
Hardman’s best game in 2018 came in week two against South Carolina. He had six receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown in that game. That sounds doable for him in a Chiefs uniform, wouldn’t you say?
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