The Kansas City Chiefs are in an interesting draft position with the No. 11 pick. They may not be in a perfect spot for their needs and that’s why I could see them moving out of the slot once the draft starts.
This week, Kansas City general manager Scott Pioli said he was completely open to this approach in the first round.
“We may pick, we may trade up if something is getting close to us that we can get and someone is trying to bail out at a ridiculous price that we can’t pass up and there’s a player that really is the apple of our eye, or move back if someone comes to us with something,” Pioli said in a pre-draft news conference. “I think it might be a little bit interesting this year while we’re sitting there as to what we want to do.”
I think there may be a limited group of players Kansas City would trade up for. I could see them moving up to the No. 7 range for Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill, but I’m not convinced Kansas City would go up to the No. 3-4 range for the quarterback.
I’m not so sure there are any other prospects the Chiefs will make a big reach to get.
If the Chiefs stay at No. 11, they will focus on Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly or Memphis defensive tackle Dontari Poe. Mississippi State’s Fletcher Cox has been rising up draft boards and he could possibly be on the Chiefs’ radar at No. 11. Cox was a better college performer than Poe. Pioli values game-film production.
Bailing out and sliding down five to 10 spots and picking up another quality pick is also feasible option. By dropping down, Kansas City would eye Stanford guard David DeCastro (he could be available in the No. 14-16 range) or even Alabama safety Mark Barron (he could also be available in the same spot) to pair with Eric Berry.
The Chiefs have a lot of options and I think they will be one of the most interesting teams to watch in the first half of the first round.