KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A wrap-up of the Kansas City Chiefs' draft.
Best move: By trading down a couple of times in the early rounds, the Chiefs picked up a couple of extra selections in the top 125 picks. The Chiefs relinquished their first-round draft pick, but they weren’t going to get a player with immediate impact or one with more potential than their initial choice, second-round defensive tackle Chris Jones of Mississippi State. The extra picks allowed the Chiefs to add a couple of cornerbacks with potential, KeiVarae Russell of Notre Dame in the third round and Eric Murray of Minnesota in the fourth. The Chiefs needed more numbers at corner.
Riskiest move: The Chiefs were jumped in the first round by the Denver Broncos, who drafted quarterback Paxton Lynch. The Chiefs coveted Lynch, who likely would have been their pick had he fallen to them in the first round. They will regret not making a stronger move to get Lynch if he becomes the Broncos’ next great quarterback. The Broncos had more draft picks to offer in a trade to move up. They relinquished their third-round choice for the pick that allowed them to draft Lynch. The Chiefs at the time didn’t have a third-round pick, having lost it as part of the penalty for tampering last year with prospective free agent Jeremy Maclin. The Chiefs also drafted in the fifth round kick-return specialist Tyreek Hill, who pleaded guilty last year to punching and choking his pregnant girlfriend.
Most surprising move: The Chiefs hadn’t traded out of the first round since 2004, but after missing out on Lynch, among others, they sent their top pick to the San Francisco 49ers. That says the Chiefs had nobody on their board at that point who they felt they couldn’t live without. That being the case, the Chiefs were wise to bail and collect some extra picks later in the draft. Jones, their top pick, was in consideration for their selection had they remained in their original spot in the first round.
File it away: Russell could wind up as a starter with a strong training camp. One starting cornerback, Phillip Gaines, has yet to establish himself as a reliable player on an every-down basis and is coming off a torn ACL. If Gaines falters, Russell could claim his job.
Thumbs up: The Chiefs deserve credit for accumulating some extra draft picks. They entered the draft with seven picks, including two in the top 125. They parlayed that into nine picks and five of the top 126 choices. The draft is a percentages game, and they increased their chances of finding more good players.