Chiefs — 2026 Draft Recap

Welcome to Muffed. The Kansas City Chiefs just turned in their most defense-forward draft in years — and they did it without trading up or getting cute. Seven picks, four on defense, headlined by cornerback Mansoor Delane at pick six. The theme, in the GM's own words, is speed on defense. The verdict: this front office decided the offense was fine and the defense needed teeth, length, and a 4.38 corner to chase wideouts around the AFC. Let's get into it.

Start with the pass defense, where Kansas City spent three picks including the top one. The unit held up on paper in 2025 — minus 1.28 in expected points added allowed — but 35 sacks and just 13 takeaways across 17 games told the front office to upgrade cover and rush at the same time. Enter Delane out of LSU: 45 tackles, 11 pass breakups, a number that led the SEC and ranked 12th nationally. The Chiefs zoomed him last week and the GM called him as consistent a cover guy as Kansas City has scouted in five years. At pick 40, Oklahoma edge R Mason Thomas — 6.5 sacks, 9.5 tackles for loss, a 7.25 Relative Athletic Score (the 0-to-10 grade comparing combine and pro-day testing to every player at the position since 1987). The real headline is the 4.65 forty at 245 pounds. The GM was blunt: Kansas City has missed a true speed rusher off the edge, and Thomas's job is to make tackles turn their hips quick so the interior can clean up. Round four added Oregon corner Jadon Canady — 39 tackles, six pass breakups, a 6.50 Relative Athletic Score — as depth behind Delane.

The run defense was already a quiet strength — minus 18.51 in rushing expected points added allowed, 4.2 yards per carry surrendered — and Kansas City doubled down at the back of round one with Clemson defensive tackle Peter Woods. A 7.60 Relative Athletic Score puts him in the upper third of defensive tackles tested since 1987. He's 21. He posted 29 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks — and got eight goal-line carries for two rushing touchdowns, which tells you everything about his lower-body power. The GM called him a prototype three-technique who can slide to nose, heavy-handed, ascending. That's how you keep a strength a strength.

On the passing offense, Kansas City waited until day three and bet on production. Round five, pick 176, Cincinnati receiver Cyrus Allen: 50 catches, 660 yards, 12 receiving touchdowns — that touchdown total led the Big 12 and ranked 8th nationally. His predicted points added (the college equivalent of NFL expected points added) was plus 0.62 per play, plus 40.94 on the season. That's loud for a fifth-rounder. The Relative Athletic Score sits at 8.69 — top-15-percent athleticism at the position. At pick 249, LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier — 1,927 yards, 12-to-5 touchdown-to-interception split, plus 66.18 in total predicted points added in the SEC. A developmental room add behind the franchise quarterback, and the value at 249 is real.

The rushing offense got one swing, and it was a good one. The 2025 ground game averaged just 107 yards a game and barely cleared zero in per-carry expected points added — so at pick 161, Nebraska's Emmett Johnson. 251 carries, 1,451 yards, 12 touchdowns on the ground, plus 46 catches for 370 out of the backfield. That rushing total led the Big Ten and ranked 11th nationally. The 5.76 Relative Athletic Score is middle-of-the-road, but a dual-threat back at 22 in the fifth is exactly the swing this offense needed.

Pick of the draft is Delane, and the case isn't just that he went sixth. You can argue Woods. You can argue Thomas. Delane is the one because of positional scarcity and the GM's conviction. Premium man-coverage corners who run 4.38, transfer up to the SEC, and get more consistent — not less — don't fall to you twice. The GM said Delane answered every question about his speed at his pro-day, and the front office had been tracking him since 2024 at Virginia Tech. Edge rushers like Thomas come through every draft. Three-techniques like Woods come through most drafts. A locked-in cover corner who steps up to LSU and ascends? Rare. First card in.

Looking ahead to 2026, the biggest thing to watch is whether this defense actually plays faster — because that was the stated mission of the entire class. A 4.38 corner, a 4.65 edge, and a 7.60-Relative-Athletic-Score interior disruptor are all in the building. The question is whether 13 takeaways across 17 games turns into a real turnover number when those three share the field. The offense got depth and a touchdown-machine slot receiver but no premium investment, so the pressure on this defense to carry games is real. If the speed shows up on Sundays, this class smashed. If takeaways stay at 0.8 a game, the conversation gets harder. Kansas City picked a lane and went all the way down it.