Latest CBS Sports mock draft has KC Chiefs trading out of first round

Would the KC Chiefs trade their first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft? The latest mock draft says they would.

In 2016, Kansas City Chiefs fans eagerly awaited the team’s draft selection at pick No. 28 only to find out that the team had traded the pick to the 49ers and wouldn’t be making their first selection. Since the 2016 NFL Draft, the Chiefs have made just two selections in the first round (Patrick Mahomes in 2017 and Clyde Edwards-Helaire in 2020).

This is all being discussed because Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports had the Chiefs trading out of the first round in his latest mock draft. In the mock, the Chiefs swap spots with the Patriots, who then make a pick at No. 31 overall (and take Mac Jones, for what it’s worth).

While fans would obviously be disappointed in the moment, sometimes trading out of the first round is a smart move for teams. And for the Chiefs, who have the second to last pick in round one, trading out of the first round and moving their first selection to the second round could be beneficial for them.

Don’t be shocked if something like this does happen for the KC Chiefs come draft night.

I understand the frustrations of these kinds of trades because of watch parties and overall excitement to see who the team takes that first night, but this is a move that could make sense for Kansas City. They’re strapped for cash at the moment, so getting an extra draft pick would be tempting for sure.

Benjamin doesn’t give details of the trade, but most of the time the teams obviously swap selections and then maybe swap spots again in the fourth round or so. Sometimes teams will also give the team an extra pick in next year’s draft as well. This would have to be what the Chiefs were receiving in return, especially if they allow a conference-rival in the Patriots to move up and nab their quarterback of the future.

The Chiefs certainly have positions of need, but if there’s not a player they’re in love with waiting for them at pick No. 31, trading out of round one and adding an extra pick (either for this year’s or next year’s draft) is a nice incentive. When the Chiefs traded out of round one in 2016, they still were able to land Chris Jones in the second round and that was the guy they wanted all along.

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If a trade happened the night of the first round, yes, Chiefs Kingdom would be upset, but they’d also understand that doing this would better the franchise in the long run.

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