Kansas City Chiefs Mock Draft Roundup 4.0

There might be bigger needs elsewhere, but Juan Thornhill is a free agent, so safety is a spot Kansas City could address with this versatile playmaker offering length and hitting ability.

The Kansas City Chiefs added George Karlaftis in the first round in 2022 but are likely set to lose Carlos Dunlap (expiring contract) and Frank Clark (cap casualty) in the offseason. A highly productive edge rusher in the SEC, Derick Hall would add to the youth movement and a critical spot on the roster.

Travis Kelce might be rolling along, but he's only a few months younger than Rob Gronkowski. At 33 Kelce is still fine, and adding Kincaid as the next killer receiving tight end in the rotation — and giving Patrick Mahomes yet another option — would be terrifying.

McDonald fits the criteria for athletes coming off the edge nowadays and, after an extremely productive stint in college, could have an even bigger impact getting after the quarterback in the NFL.

Zach Harrison was a behemoth of a recruit who did not put everything together all at once at Ohio State. He's still a total monster of an athletic prospect, though. Expect him to measure near 36 inches in arm length at the combine while flirting with a 4.4-second 40-yard dash — at 6-6, 270.

Wide receiver is a position often addressed by the Chiefs in early mock drafts, but with last year's selection of Skyy Moore, and the acquisition of Kadarius Toney via a trade, Kansas City has two young receivers to develop already in the fold.

Another potential need is offensive tackle, but I'm taking the focus to the defensive side of the football. Frank Clark is a free agent after 2023, so adding a pass rusher with some room to grow is the kind of forward-thinking move that the Chiefs have made in recent years.

Lukas Van Ness is generating a ton of buzz as draft season begins, despite being used in more of a rotational role for Iowa this season. Still, the potential is there, as Van Ness has the power, burst, and explosiveness to win both on the edge, and on the inside. You might see him aligned as a defensive tackle in sub packages but win with speed and power, as he did for a sack against Wisconsin. You might see him on the edge, blowing up the pocket on third down as he did in the second quarter against Purdue to help the Hawkeyes get off the field.

The potential is there, and the Chiefs place a bet on that at the end of the first round.

Darnell Washington is listed at 6-7, 265 pounds (he actually plays bigger than that), and while he's growing into his role as a receiver, he's essentially another offensive tackle when he's inline. Basically, he'd serve two roles in Kansas City: receiver in a high-powered offense and an extra blocker.

At 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds with athletic ability that once made him the No. 1 overall recruit in the country, Bresee still makes it into the first round. However, an injury history that kept him off the field for most of the past two seasons, and a lot of under-developed traits, add risk to his scouting report. In flashes, he shows some unique movement skills for a lineman who has experience from zero-technique to five-technique. But it could take some time for him to really show that consistently. And the Chiefs are a team that can afford to let him take that time to develop.

Kansas City redid its wide receiver corps last offseason, but it might have to do another overhaul in 2023. JuJu Smith-Schuster, who had a resurgent season, and Mecole Hardman are both free agents. Could they supplement what they have with this pick? I'm a huge fan of Flowers, who caught 200 passes in his college career. He's polished and shifty, shaking cornerbacks from all over the field to get open.

I almost went with speedster Jalin Hyatt (Tennessee), who is a better deep threat, but Flowers is more ready to contribute early. Hyatt had 15 touchdowns and averaged 18.9 yards per catch for the Volunteers in 2022.

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo finds ways to tap into the versatile talents of high-IQ defenders with loaded toolboxes.

Tweets by @EDSFootball