Kansas City Chiefs draft Kenneth Murray in PFF post-combine mock draft

The Kansas City Chiefs’ defense improved significantly in 2019, but they’ll need to continue adding depth on that side of the ball. PFF’s post-combine mock draft has them doing just that, grabbing Kenneth Murray with the 32nd pick.

Mock drafts are everywhere by this point, but with the Kansas City Chiefs having the final pick of the first round, who they’re linked to changes with just about every mock draft. In Michael Renner of PFF’s post-combine mock, he had the Chiefs drafting Kenneth Murray, a linebacker out of Oklahoma.

"The hamstring injury Murray suffered during his second 40 isn’t expected to be serious, which makes him pretty much a lock at this point to go Round 1. Linebackers at 241 pounds running 4.52 40s with 38-inch verticals and 10-foot-9 broad jumps don’t last long in the draft. He will be a sight for sore eyes for Chiefs fans who have seen Reggie Ragland (4.72 40, 31.5-inch vertical, 9-foot-8 broad) in the open field."

Renner mentioned Ragland, who is slated to be a free agent and who probably won’t be back in Kansas City in 2020. Murray could easily come in and not only replace Ragland, but be a better option on the field than Ragland was.

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Murray is forgoing his senior season and entering the NFL Draft as a junior, which isn’t surprising given his 2019 stats. The Sooner linebacker totaled 102 tackles with 17 for loss while also notching four sacks and defending four passes. In an Oklahoma defense that wasn’t known for being great, Murray was the exception and was a star for the Sooners D.

Looking at the linebacker situation for the Chiefs, they’ll still have Anthony Hitchens, Ben Niemann, Dorian O’Daniel, and potentially Damien Wilson (he has an option for the 2020 season, but the Chiefs should exercise it), so there’s not a ton of depth there. That could pave the way for the Chiefs to add a linebacker with their first selection.

With all of this being said, drafting Murray wouldn’t be a bad thing, but Chiefs fans are almost expecting Brett Veach to trade out of the first round all together. This would make sense because the Chiefs – as of now – only have five total picks in the 2020 NFL Draft and with some large contracts on the horizon, they need to make sure they get as much young, cheap talent as possible.

Kenneth Murray would give the Kansas City Chiefs a linebacker who would be ready to be inserted into Steve Spagnuolo’s defense from Day 1, but will the Chiefs actually make a selection at pick 32?