D
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs bled value on every deal, hence the D.
by CalvinylG ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 23 picks
· 2 steals
· 14 reaches
Nobody else had Dillon Johnson anywhere near the 116th pick. The Chiefs did, by 53 spots, and that gap is the whole story. It grades a D, and the process earned it.
The trade table is where this weekend went wrong. The Chiefs indulged a want in Hart while a need in quarterback stayed open.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through quarterback. It is a win-now wager, and the future is the stake.
On value alone, James makes the weekend a net positive.
The verdict is not kind, and fairly so; this class has a hill to climb.
Pick-by-Pick
They paid sticker price for Xavier Legette in the 40th overall pick, and that is fine. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They reached a country mile for Ruke Orhorhoro at pick No. 50, and the board is aghast. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Patrick Paul in slot 58 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
The board had DJ James higher than Round 3, Pick 3, and the cornerback fell to them anyway. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
They went early on Austin Booker in pick 68, and the value did not follow. It fills a real need, too.
A premium they did not need to pay, Brandon Dorlus a notch or two before his time. The roster fit checks out.
Fair-plus on Jeremiah Trotter Jr., a quiet win that adds up over a draft. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They paid a round early for Christian Mahogany in slot 88, more than the board wanted. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Dadrion Taylor-Demerson at the 90th pick is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the safety. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
A wild overpay on Matt Goncalves in Round 3, Pick 28, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Theo Johnson at No. 94 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
The eyebrow-raiser of the weekend. They went cornerback with Cam Hart while clear needs at quarterback sat open.
They talked themselves into Johnny Wilson at pick No. 100, and the board did not agree. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Mekhi Wingo. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
No drama and no debate, Cedric Gray went about where he belonged in No. 107. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
The board had cheaper options than McKinnley Jackson at pick 115, and it noticed. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Value said wait; Dillon Johnson in pick No. 116 says they were not listening. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Jared Wiley in the 120th pick is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A curious use of the Round 4 slot. Quarterback needed the pick; a cornerback in Dwight McGlothern did not.
Of all the spots to shop, they chose safety. Kitan Oladapo in slot 132 leaves quarterback for later.
Kendall Milton at the 154th overall pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Value with a capital V on Trevor Keegan in Round 5, Pick 19, a genuine coup. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Ryan Flournoy in the Round 6 slot. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.