D-
Kansas City Chiefs
The phones sank the Chiefs this weekend: D-.
by CalvinylG ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 18 picks
· 6 steals
· 6 reaches
Nobody else had Joshua Cephus anywhere near No. 174. The Chiefs did, by 90 spots, and that gap is the whole story. A weekend that fought the value and lost, hence the D-.
Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere. With quarterback and running back unsolved, spending premium capital on cornerback is the choice that costs them. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through quarterback.
They banked enough surplus on Stover to cover a lot of smaller sins. They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even, and quarterback is still a hole.
Pick-by-Pick
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Xavier Legette. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They did well to land Jordan Morgan in the 40th overall pick, just ahead of his grade. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Ruke Orhorhoro at the Round 2 slot is a conviction pick that outran the value. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A reach for Bralen Trice in slot 53; a little patience would have been rewarded. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A quiet steal in pick No. 64: DJ James for less than the market said. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Nice patience on Junior Colson, who had no business lasting to pick 69. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Christian Haynes at slot 71 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A real head-scratcher, Matt Goncalves in the Round 3 slot is miles ahead of his ranking. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Taking Cade Stover in Round 3, Pick 32 is close to grand larceny; a tight end that good had no business lasting this long. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A clean, defensible pick in pick No. 99 with a little surplus value in Brenden Rice. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A surprising call. With quarterback and running back still to address, they spent pick 100 on Cam Hart, a cornerback they were not short of.
They reached into another round for McKinnley Jackson, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It fills a real need, too.
No edge and no loss on Zak Zinter in the 105th pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Johnny Wilson in No. 110 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Kitan Oladapo at the 171st pick is money in the bank, a safety taken below his worth. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Value with a capital V on Jared Wiley in pick 172, a genuine coup. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A tidy bit of business in pick No. 173, where Xavier Thomas graded well above the range. A need, and now a little less of one.
Joshua Cephus at Round 5, Pick 38 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.