2014 Kansas City Chiefs Mock Draft: Pre-Free Agency Edition

Sep 28, 2013; Columbus, OH, USA; Wisconsin Badgers wide receiver

(4) makes a jumping catch while being defended by a Ohio State Buckeyes defender during the first quarter at Ohio Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Round 3: Kansas City Chiefs
Jared Abbrederis
WR, Wisconsin

Abbrederis appears to be the victim of a crazy deep wide receiver class as most years a guy with Abbrederis’ skills would go in the late first round or early second round. Someone is going to fall and if Abbrederis is the guy then the Chiefs are getting a steal with the 87th overall pick.

The measurables are all there for the two-time Big Ten first-team selection. He’s 6-1, 195 with room to add weight; ran an unofficial 4.44 40-yard dash (1.53 10-yard split), 6.80 three-cone drill, and 4.08 short-shuttle; possess 31 3/8 inch arms and 9 5/8 inch hands. Is he an athletic freak? No, but he certainly has enough athleticism and size to be a productive NFL receiver.

His college production and scouting report is also excellent. He was a walk-on at Wisconsin and redshirted his first year, then played in all 13 games – starting two – in his first year of eligibility. By his redshirt sophomore season he was a full-time starter and all-Big Ten honorable mention receiver. From there he was nothing but lights out.

Career stats: 202 receptions, 3,140 yards, 15.5 ypc, 23 touchdowns; 28 rushes, 291 yards, two touchdowns; 31 kick returns with a 25.8 yard average; 55 punt returns with a 10.7 yard average and one touchdown. All of this in Wisconsin’s run-heavy offense.

Scouts praise his football intelligence, route-running skills, steady hands, and his work ethic. It is the football intelligence that could make him incredibly dangerous when partnered with Alex Smith. Abbrederis was a quarterback in high school and translated his knowledge and understand of what a quarterback is seeing and translated it into his receiver game. His athleticism and intelligence allows him to lineup anywhere and do anything within the offense. This could make him a frequent target of Smith, who values safe and reliable targets.

Get him in an NFL weight room and Abbrederis could end up being a smaller version of Jordy Nelson for the Chiefs.

Round 4: Kansas City Chiefs
Pierre Desir
CB, Lindenwood

It was difficult to pass on C.J. Fiedorowicz, a tight end out of Iowa but the Chiefs have a bigger need at cornerback. Desir is the first of two repeat picks from the pre-combine mock draft.

We can safely assume Kansas City is going to add a cornerback this offseason one way or anther, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they added two. Depth at cornerback hurt the Chiefs tremendously in the second half of the season. Between injuries, Marcus Cooper hitting a rookie wall, and the dud Dunta Robinson turned out to be, Kansas City didn’t have a lot of consistent performances for their corners. While some of this was an issue with the pass rush and safety play, part of it was a lack of fit for the system. Desir is a fit for the system.

Desir measured at 6-1, 198 pounds at the combine which caused some of the size happy people to cool on him a little bit. This probably works in favor of the Chiefs as Desir plays like he is a 6-3 corner. At the combine he posted a unofficial 4.52 40-time and a 6.86 three-cone drill, so the speed and the athleticism is there. And the production in the MIAA, Division II’s best football conference, was excellent.

Part of what people miss about Seattle’s secondary is how well they create turnovers. It isn’t just that they have a bunch of tall guys running around, they also have guys who can make plays with their hands. Desir is a guy who has very good hands for a defensive back and show the ability to create turnovers. In two seasons with Lindenwood he intercepted 13 passes, including a school-record nine in 2012. This is the element, mixed with his size, which should be more appealing to fans than his height.

There are a lot of things to like about the reports surrounding Desir, his combine results, and his background story. Using 2014 as a developmental year behind Brandon Flowers, Sean Smith, Marcus Cooper, and a free agent signing could be an option, but there are reasons to think Desir could do well in a reserve roll right now.