3 Chiefs Who Will Be Replaced on Day 2 of the NFL Draft
The first night of the 2024 NFL Draft was a huge one for Kansas City Chiefs fans. Desperate to give Patrick Mahomes a legitimate weapon, the Chiefs sent the 32nd and 95th overall picks to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for picks No. 28 and 133 to draft Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
Now that the Chiefs have a potential No. 1 WR on their hands, it's time to focus on Day 2 of the NFL Draft. Even though Kansas City has one of the best rosters in the league (as if back-to-back Super Bowls didn't make that obvious), there's always room for improvement if it means replacing underperformers with hungry rookies.
With that in mind, here are three Chiefs who could find themselves replaced on Day 2 when they draft 64th.
1. Lucas Niang, OT
The Chiefs' offensive line was thrown into a frenzy when starting left tackle Donovan Smith left in free agency. The team's "best" internal options to fill Smith's void are Wanya Morris and Lucas Niang, but when it comes to the pair, I see the latter being a replacement candidate.
While nothing is guaranteed, Morris' spot on the roster seems fairly safe. After all, the Chiefs used a 2023 third-round pick on the 23-year-old blocker and he even made four starts in 14 games as a rookie, playing a total of 339 offensive snaps.
Meanwhile, Niang has essentially become a non-factor for the Chiefs. After starting in nine of his 12 appearances in 2021, the former 2020 third-rounder hasn't made a single start in 21 games across the last two seasons. Injuries have held him out of the lineup more often than not as he missed 18 games over the last three years.
The reason why Niang needs replacing is that he isn't even effective whenever he does see playing time. He's played 37 passing downs since the start of the 2022 campaign, allowing five pressures (4 hurries, 1 QB hit) while playing to an average offense grade of 45.7 on Pro Football Focus.
With several solid tackles like Notre Dame's Blake Fisher and Washington's Roger Rosengarten still on the board, I won't be surprised if the Chiefs bring in a talented tackle to compete with Morris. Niang just isn't good enough to be in the mix and Kansas City would be wise to cut its losses ASAP.