B+
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs cashed the board's mistake on Royer: B+.
by breshiers ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 13 picks
· 8 steals
· 0 reaches
When a board-topper like Joe Royer slides to the Round 5 slot, you do not overthink it, and the Chiefs did not.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through quarterback. The hoard sets up next April more than it helps this September.
They left with wide receiver solved and the rest of the wish list mostly ticked off.
Not a headline-grabber, but a perfectly good weekend's work.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 27 they get a green-dot type in the middle, and a steal at that. A clean fit for the roster.
In pick No. 29 they get a sticky cover corner at a price that makes it sweeter. Need was not the driver here.
Omar Cooper Jr. in the Round 2 slot lands just on the right side of the ledger. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
You do not let an edge rusher like Akheem Mesidor reach the 58th overall pick and blink. They did not. The roster fit checks out.
Circle this one: Lee Hunter at the 74th pick is a fall that decides a draft. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Max Klare in Round 4, Pick 10 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Genesis Smith is a better player than slot 115 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
They did well to land Dametrious Crownover in No. 148, just ahead of his grade. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Taking Joe Royer in pick No. 169 is close to grand larceny; a tight end that good had no business lasting this long. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Good price on Bryce Boettcher in Round 5, Pick 34, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A straight-up fair deal on Domani Jackson at No. 176, value and slot in agreement. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They read the board right and Ephesians Prysock was the payoff at the 199th pick. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
No edge and no loss on Chase Roberts in pick 210; it is a wash and a sensible one. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.