The Kansas City Chiefs are entering one of the most important drafts in franchise history. After coming off a solid draft in 2008, the Chiefs must continue to build off of last year’s draft to generate a solid contending team for years to come. The only way this can be done is to address the major needs of our beloved red and gold. In this post, I will be ranking our major draft needs; 1 being a non-need and 10 being a desperate need.
Quarterback: -10
Sure Tyler Thigpen showed potential in 2008. I don’t want to throw him under the bus or anything, but who knows what is going to happen when we get a new coach and if he will want to stick with this spread offense. If our new coach does not want to go with the spread, can Tyler be an effective under-the-center type quarterback? The Chiefs can not afford to wait if Tyler doesn’t pan out. Damon Huard is more than likely gone and lord knows that we can’t rely on Brodie Croyle. We must pick up a QB in this draft but none of the quarterbacks coming out of the draft seem to be worthy of a 3rd overall pick in my opinion. I say we pick up a QB in the later rounds. Here are some who should be available after the first round.
- Graham Harrell, Texas Tech - In 2008 Harrell threw for 5,100 yards, 45 touchdowns and posted a quarterback rating of 160.04. I know that he is definitely a product of a system but his stats are still outstanding. Although he does not have the frame of most NFL QB’s, he has good fundamentals to become a solid NFL player. Great arm, good accuracy, durable, shows poise in the pocket and has great football intelligence. I see Graham Harrell more as a developmental type player but he definitely has potential.
- Josh Freeman, Kansas State - Standing at 6′5″, 238 pounds Freeman has great size for the NFL. I personally think Josh Freeman is overrated but a lot of people like him and he is rated high on many peoples boards for QB’s in the 2009 draft, so I thought I would list him. He has great size and a cannon arm but I question his decision making frequently, especially in clutch situations.
- Nate Davis, Ball State - I think Nate Davis would be a solid pick on the 2nd day of the draft. He threw for 9,233 yards and 74 touchdowns in 3 years at Ball State. He seems to be a more NFL ready quarterback and I think he wouldn’t take as long to develop as a Graham Harrell. Davis has great smarts and plays well under pressure. If we can get him on the second day of the draft I say we take him.
Defensive End -10
It is no secret. There is no hiding it. The Chiefs pass rush last year was embarrassing. Dreadful. Horrendous. I could go on and on with how bad our pass rush was last year. The Chiefs posted and NFL all-time worst 10 sacks. Tamba Hali could not cut it as a right defensive end. He wasn’t all that great when we moved him back to LDE. I like Tamba but I think he will only thrive if he has a good LDE to compliment him like he did when we had Jared Allen. There are some good DE’s coming out of the draft this year but once again, none worthy of a 3rd overall pick.
- Brian Orakpo, Texas - This man is a beast standing at 6′3″, 255 pounds of pure muscle. The amazing part about him is that he still has the frame to become bigger. Orakpo has a great motor and great moves on the pass rush. His timing off the snap appears to be inconsistent but Brian is still one of the best DE’s coming out of draft if not the best. If there is some way we could trade down a few spots, pick up another draft pick or two, and still get him, it would be a great move.
- Everette Brown, Florida State - This would be a solid pick as well if we could get him in the 2nd round.
- Michael Johnson, Georgia Tech - As of a few months ago Johnson was ranked high and expected to go early in the draft. His draft stock has dropped over the past few months. Johnson has amazing size and speed but seems to be more of a raw talent. I have been looking at some mock drafts recently and many of them have Johnson going in the second round and some of the mock’s have him going to the Chiefs. If he is there in the 2nd round I think it would be a good move to grab him.
Linebackers- 10
Our linebacking corps is another position that desperately needs to be addressed in the upcoming draft. Donnie Edwards is old and on his way out. Our other linebackers consist of Rocky Boiman, Pat Thomas, and Demorrio Williams. We don’t have much going for us at the linebacking position. We do have a bright spot though. Derrick Johnson. I know there are a lot of DJ naysayers out there, but I have confidence in him. Sure he could be better for this stage in his career but he is still the best linebacker we have. DJ is a solid linebacker, but he still has room to improve and he will. Derrick hasn’t really had much help from our other linebackers or our D-line either so I think with another legitimate linebacker at his side and some more D-line help, he will excel.
- Aaron Curry, Wake Forest - Curry is the best linebacker coming out of the draft this year. I have seen a few mock drafts that have our Chiefs taking Aaron Curry with 3rd overall pick. This is a solid pick. The greatest thing about Curry is his elite speed. He has the ability to cut off the corners quickly and get to the quarterback. Aaron also has great recovery speed when getting blocked. Aaron Curry would be an awesome compliment to Derrick Johnson.
Offensive Line- 9
Don’t get me wrong, our O-line has improved tremendously from the 07′ season to the 08′ season. The Chiefs were ranked dead last in rush offense in 2007. Last year we were ranked 16th in rush offense. Great start! Brian Waters is still a beast and Branden Albert is looking studly. As for the rest of our line, they are replaceable. With a high pick of an offensive lineman and a couple of free agent acquisitions, our line will be ready to progress some more.
- Jason Smith, Baylor - Jason Smith is arguably the best OT coming out of the draft. Good size and a great motor. He did miss 5 games last year with a torn MCL but other than that he has had a great collegiate career and seems fit and ready for the NFL.
- Eugene Monroe, Viginia - Hands down the best pass protector in the draft. Monroe is more agile than Jason Smith and is quicker on his feet. Jason Smith and Eugene Monroe are neck and neck for the best OT coming out this year. Either one would be a great pick.
The only thing that concerns me about drafting another 1st round OT is, what will we do with Branden Albert? We could move him to RT but he has no experience there. I guess he could play guard. He played there in college. We’ll See!
Wide Reciever/Tight End- 8
Everyone knows that basically all of our receiving yards came from three players last year. Dwayne Bowe, Tony Gonzalez, and Mark Bradley. Mark Bradley started out hot when he was acquiredin the middle of the season but kind of fizzled out towards the end of the season, partly due to injury. With the Tony Gonzalez saga continuing, nobody knows if he will be here next year. We should know whether he’s staying or going by the time the draft comes around, but even if he stays we still need a top end reciever.
- Michael Crabree, Texas Tech - ESPN has Crabtree rated as the best player coming out in ‘09. The man is simply a beast. He has the size, speed, route running, and hands you would want in any great receiver. I would be surprised if the Chiefs actually picked Crabtree (if he is still on the board) but not too sad. Imagine D-Bo lining up next to Michael Crabtree and possibly Tony Gonzalez. Wow! A man can dream can’t he?
If we decide not to go with Crabtree or he’s not there at the #3 pick, Anquan Boldin could be available this year (contract dispute) along with some other quality receivers out there.
Defensive Backs -5
The Chiefs are looking good with DB’s for once. The Brandon’s are looking great and will only get better. Maurice Leggett is showing some potential as well. Pollard and Page are inconsistent at times but let’s give them another year and see if they can’t pull it together. I have faith in the both of them to succeed. But you can never have enough depth, especially at the DB positions. Look for us to draft one or two on the second day of the draft.
Running Back- 4
Larry Johnson is pretty much gone. Jamaal Charles is awesome when he is healthy and Kolby Smith is progressing. We will need to pick up another RB but we shouldn’t worry too much. RB’s are a dime a dozen these days and our O-line should be built up pretty good by the start of the ‘09 season. Look for the Chiefs to draft a RB on the 2nd day of the draft or pick one up in free agency.
Overall
I know it’s a lot to take in right now, but the Chiefs have some major pieces missing when it comes to their rebuilding puzzle. These issues must be addressed before going into the ‘09 season or it could be another long year. We are off to a great start following the 08′ draft, the hiring of Scott Pioli, and the firing of Herm Edwards. The Chiefs are also well under the cap, so we should be able to make a substantial splash in the free agency market, and we should also be able to get a couple more draft picks with the possible trades of LJ and Tony G. We are just a couple of players away from being a respectable, legitimate, winning football team! Let’s do this!
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Great post, Z-Dub. I’m going to have to take a close look at Johnson, along with Nate Davis and the two tackles, especially since it looks like Andre Smith might be slipping.
I Want Crabtree Especially If Haley Is Gonna Be Our HC. We Would Have A Passing Game As Powerful As Arizona’s But Hopefully With A Steady Ground Game.
Yea….It is crazy the rise the Baylor tackle has gotten…So deep in tackles, at least at the top end.
I am confident if Haley is introduced he could appropriately develop a QB so I kind of want to take a chance on Josh Freeman if we have a shot. That should make you happy Best, also be awesome to have a local boy playing for a team we know he loves. Mutual interest, would be pretty sweet.
Crabtree is very impressive but I would give WR a 7 or so…not 8…perhaps…
Just to make Adam mad.
I would add Rhett Bomar and Hunter Cantwell to the list of potential day 2 selections.
I think you have to include names like Andre Smith, Michael Oher, Max Unger, Alex Mack, Eben Britton, Phil Loadholt, Duke Robinson & Herman Johnson as other top (Rd 1/2) OL considerations. I think it would be pretty hard to pass up Unger, Mack, or Britton as early late first round (trade up)/ early 2nd round considerations.
I also like Darrius Heyward-Bey also as a late 1st round / early 2nd round selection. Big kid with blazing speed – could give us the deep threat we’ve been lacking.
Aaron Curry is by far my favorite pick for the #3 spot. He comes with the explosiveness of Malauaga and the leadership and versatility of Laurinaitis. He’s that rare complete package, a notch above Jerod Mayo.
If Curry is not there, we may have think about Malcolm Jenkins as a replacement for Surtain. Mind you, we no longer have the benefit of Herm identifying and developing late round CBs. If we can trade down (depending on where of course) we might also want to consider Laurinaitis for the reasons previously mentioned.
Any thoughts about a kicker? Do we stick with Barth? Or maybe go with Sakoda as our 4th or 5th rounder? I’m thinking latter.
QB – Agreed, needs to be addressed in the draft, but not until later or even day 2. I like Nate Davis, but I’m not big on Josh Freeman or Graham Harrell. I think the most under rated Qb this Year is Rhett Bomar out of Sam Houston State.
DE – ALl three very solid guys and Orakpo is very impressive, but Everette Brown is the #1 DE in this draft. I also like Tyson JAckson out of LSU, He’s huge.
LB – Probably our biggest need. A good corps of LBs would go a long way to solve our defensive woes. Aaron Curry is hands down the best LB in the draft, I’m not high on Rey M. but I do like James L. and Brian Cushing.
O-Line – There is a ton on o-line talent in this draft. We definitely need to get some but it can wait til round 3 or later. We don’t need an elite OT, we need a RT and a center more than anything. Watch the board and get the best available.
WR / TE – This is a position that should be addressed every year. Crabtree is hands down the best. If Tony G leaves, we have Cottam who had a really good rookie season, he can block and catch, but he’s no Tony.
DB – Need some solid backups but the starting lineup is set. Maybe a stud safety that will tackle?
RB – As stated, dime a dozen. trade LJ for whatever we can get and pick the best one available when we address this position.
Overall – things to adress through FA and the draft:
Pass rush – Need a DE and some LBs to fix this and fix our run defense.
O-Line – Need to fix the right side, however the powers that be decide to do it. Center, RG and RT need something done. Move folks around and get some more talent, but fix this ASAP. This is where the Offense starts, can’t do anything well without a good (I’m tending more towards great) O-Line.
QB – Always gotta look ahead and make sure you are solid at the games most important position. Thiggy Smalls is OK, but not great he reminds me of Jim McMahon. Not personally but more of the role he is best suited for. Decent leadership, a little swagger and don’t lose the game.
Everything else is more topping, but the most emphasis needs to go on these problems first.
DD
Stick with Barth, he really only had the one bad game on field goals. Yes he needs work on Kick offs, so he should spend a lot of time and energy working on them. We should definitely bring a kicker in to camp just in case and to have a good look at a backup if needed later in the year.
Also, I am absolutely convinced we need to (and will) address our lack of a pass rush through FA. Suggs is at the top of my list. He wouldn’t come cheap but he would be worth it.
Gump, I’ll tell you what – a lot of important games are lost by 3 points or less. Having a guy you can trust with attempting a 3 pointer from 45-55 yards out is pretty vital in the NFL. You should never overlook the opportunity to land a great kicker. Thankfully Pioli understands this, just look at what Gostkowski has done for the Pats.
Drafting Crabtree would be insane. We have many more positions of need than wr. Drafting Crabtree at three instead of a position where we are clearly lacking would be like treating a scrape on your knee while ignoring the fact that you have a cancerous tumor and blocked arteries. Insanity.
Adam, why would Andre Smith be slipping? The whole reason why John Parker Wilson got his ass continuously handed to him in whatever bowl that was is because Andre Smith wasn’t there to prevent it.
Cassell got franchised…is that gonna cost us our first rounder?
DD – I completely agree, My point is that Barth did a good job as a rookie, he did not choke and that bodes well. He had one game where he missed 2 FGs, but hit everything else while he was the starter (If I remember right, I may have missed one but I don’t think so) That’s why I said to bring in competition, and we should every year, so as not to miss an opportunity. There are only a handful of elite kickers, if we get one cool. If not Barth is as good as most of your NFL starters right now anyway.
Can I just say that I never watch college football. I have no idea every year which one of these players is any good.
If any of you catch me making an opinion on any player coming out of the draft this year; you better freaking call me on it.
That being said.
BPA every pick!
GO CHIEFS
Free Agents: LB Bart Scott (10), DE Terrell Suggs (10), MLB Channing Crowder (4), S Sean Jones(4)
Draft trades: Send 0ur first #3 to Oakland (Al Davis would love to add Crabtree)for their 1st #7, their 2nd and 4th.
Send LJ and a conditional next year (2nd max) to Cleveland for their second rounder. Send Tony to NYG for their 2nd.
New Draft:
R1 # 7 OT Jason Smith -Baylor
R2 #34 C Max Unger -Oregon
R2 #36 DT Fili Moala -USC
R2 #40 DE Robert Ayers -Tennessee
R2 #45 RB Donald Brown -U Conn
R3 #67 TE Jared Cook -South Carolina
R4 #98 WR Ramses Barden -Cal Poly
R4 #104 QB Rhett Bomar -Sam Houston St.
R5 #131 OG Tyronne Green -Auburn
R6 #164 LB Antiono Appleby-Virgina
R7 #194 PK Loui Sakoda -Utah
I realize there are a lot of if’s, but I think all these trades are possible. Four high 2nd round picks will really help build a team.
Pick number 3 is definitely the crabtree pick. I too like taking a tackle again this year in round one let albert and the newby duke it out for the left side or move albert to guard and we’d have one of the best o-lines in the making again. But watching curry makes a man drool too. if we get rid of Larry shonn greene would be a good pick-up in round 2 with charles being the change of pace/ 3rd down back plus greene also has excellent hands out of the backfield. I too like nate davis in the later rounds unless we trade for cassell but i see no way we can try to sign him to a tender sheet and give away 2 first rounders. Im curious to see what we do with free agency this year there are a few top tier talents out there
Why would Cleveland want LJ? They already have a has been running back. They don’t want two. Why would NY give up a second for Tony G when they had no desire to even give up a third for him this past season? I would also be against signing Sean Jones. The next coach needs to get something out of Morgan, Page, and Pollard. The answer isn’t to add a guy to the mix that was forced to split time last year because of of poor play.
I hear what your saying. And I hate LJ as much as everyone else,but he isn’t washed up. He needs a new home and could do well there. NYG have two 2nd round picks, one of which came in the Shockey deal-which would mean they traded Shockey and got Tony and a fifth. If you were the NYG (lost in NFC championship, you wouldn’t give a second rounder for Tony?)Would love to hear your plan dbk301
Andre Smith just appears to be slipping everywhere I look, kind of like Dorsey did last year. Maybe character concerns?
The other thing is, any one of us could sit here and take three days listing prospects. I took this as the ones he’s really examining and looking at.
Also, if we draft a freakin’ linebacker at No. 3 he better come with a cape, a spandex suit and his own Warner Bros. movie franchise that we get the rights to. A LB at No. 3 in this day and age — that’s insanity.
I agree with Jeremy. Unless it’s a defensive back, best player available. In round one that means Crabtree.
And I’ll have plenty more on Cassel this weekend.
Jay Glazer of FOXSports.com reports that the Kansas City Chiefs have offered the team’s head-coaching position to Cardinals offensive coordinator Todd Haley.
Per Glazer, the two sides are now in the process of working out a contract.
“He’s going to be a big loss for us,” an unnamed Cardinals player told FOXSports.com.
Haley arrived as offensive coordinator in 2007, after Ken Whisenhunt was hired to be the team’s head coach.
Haley and Chiefs G.M. Scott Pioli worked together with the Jets in the late 1990s. Haley also has coached with the Bears and the Cowboys.
If Haley ends up taking the job, it’ll be interesting to see whether the Chiefs make a play for Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner, who is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in three weeks.
If there is talk about a QB to draft, I haven’t heard squat about Johnson from Utah. He crushed Alabama (who was ranked no. 1 for several weeks) in the Sugar Bowl. He lead an undefeated team. He’s smart, has the arm, the stats, broke many of the schools records (not to mention the conference’s)and yet you hear nothing about him. The Mountain West isn’t that weak of a confrence. He could be a great steal this draft. If there can be talk about a guy from Sam Houston State (Bomar), why not a QB from a top 10 finishing school?
I don’t get that. The Sugar Bowl didn’t get that many viewers, but I watched it and Johnson was flat out dominate. He had the Ute’s ahead 21-0 in the first quarter. He’s the same size as Drew Brees, so 6′2″ 205 can’t be bad. The only draft info I have read on this kid says he’s lucky if he goes in the 5th round. I don’t get that either.
It is odd to me as well how guys can dominate in college and not get a real chance in the NFL. I think sometimes teams get a preconceived notion of what a player should look like and dismiss all players that don’t meet those expectations. Mike Aviles of the Royals is a great example of that.
thiggy is our guy, he had a great “rookie” season and with adding a wr (my next point) will help
draft crabtree with the 3rd overall pick
bulk up defense with the later round picks
i do like nate davis however i think thiggy is our guy. draft a serviceable late round back up qb
but thiggy is our guy and crabtree is a must get if hes available
also i agree with sgt_ducttape on brian johnson
hes a solid servacebale second day qb that i see draft worthy
Adam,
The Chiefs selected Derrick Thomas with the 4th overall pick. Believe it or not, sometimes using a high pick on a LB works out pretty well especially when that player becomes dominant in his role and single-handed dictates the outcome of big games. “Insanity” is you continually arguing against this in the hopes for a different result.
With Haley now the coach he has to be drooling over the fact he could take crabtree (maybe if Pioli would go for that) and have a Bowe, Crabtree Gonzalez threesome with Bradley sprinkled in there at times. Than they could prob draft defense with the rest of the picks plus a young QB and sign a good o lineman in free agency