Debbie Downer Talks NFL Draft (Part 1)
By Kenny Cember
Apr 25, 2013; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the NFL shield logo and main stage before the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
The Kansas City Chiefs are a little under a month away from making the 23rd overall selection in the 2014 NFL Draft. There are many speculations as to where the Chiefs will go with this pick. The Chiefs have a couple areas of need that they need to think about when they make this pick.
I do not know what is going on in General Manager John Dorsey and Head Coach Andy Reid’s head. However, I do know what Chiefs Kingdom, more specifically what #ChiefsTwitter, is thinking. There are three main opinions that I’ve heard from #ChiefsTwitter that I’d like to address, including my own fourth option. I will also try to weigh in the pros and cons for each option.
Option #1: Take the best available wide receiver.
This is probably my second favorite option. The Kansas City Chiefs so desperately need offensive help at the receiver position. Jamaal Charles, as outstanding as he may be, is a running back and should not be leading the Kansas City Chiefs in receiving. Dwayne Bowe, whose cap hit is probably a large reason why the Chiefs could not sign Washington Redskins receiver DeSean Jackson, showed signs of slowing down as he was a nonfactor in most games outside of the playoff collapse against the Indianapolis Colts.
Todd McShay of Scouts, Inc. has the Chiefs reaching for Cody Latimer, the wide receiver from Indiana, who CBS projects as a fifth round prospect. ESPN’s very own Mel Kiper, Jr. has the Chiefs taking Kelvin Benjamin, the physical specimen of a receiver from the national champion Florida State Seminoles.
I disagree with both McShay and Kiper here. I am a big proponent of a deep threat. I do not consider Donnie Avery to be a deep threat because of his poor ability to hold on to the football. I am currently a big proponent of both Odell Beckham Jr. of Louisiana State University and Brandin Cooks of Oregon State University.
Cooks, especially, really impressed me at the scouting combine. Cooks looked great running the gauntlet, showing excellent hands. He posted a blazing official 40 yard dash time of 4.33 seconds, a solid vertical jump, and excellent 20 and 60 yard shuttle times.
Beckham , Jr. ran a 4.43 second forty yard dash time. What I like about his combine results the most is that he had a great vertical jump at 38.5 inches and was a top performer in both the 20 and 60 yard shuttle runs. This tells me Beckham, Jr. can not only run down long balls and go up and get them, but he can also change directions quickly, which means he will get separation.
Either of these two guys would be an acceptable pick at 23.
Option #2: Take the best available free safety.
This is my least favorite option.
I am a big fan of Sanders Commings and I firmly believe he has the potential to start for the Chiefs at free safety. The only two safeties worth taking in the first round are HaHa Clinton-Dix of Alabama and Calvin Pryor of Louisville.
There is no way Clinton-Dix makes it to the Chiefs at 23, and Walter Cherepinsky of Walterfootball.com has Clinton-Dix off the board at 14 to the Chicago Bears and Calvin Pryor off the board at 17 to the Ravens. This leaves out the only two safeties worth taking in the first round. If the Kansas City Chiefs select a safety not named Haha Clinton-Dix or Calvin Pryor it will not be acceptable. With only two picks in the top 100 the Chiefs cannot afford to reach on anyone.
Option #3: Take the best overall player available.
This is my third favorite option.
I will be displeased if this pick is used on an offensive or defensive lineman. Many people on twitter, whose opinion I have great respect for, believe this is the best option for the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2014 draft. My only issue with this is that the Chiefs have too large of a need at wide receiver to take some sort of lineman or other position that would not result in a player making an immediate impact on this Kansas City Chiefs team in 2014.
With the schedule infinitely harder, the Chiefs need to give Alex Smith a reason to throw the football down the field.
Option #4: Trade down to acquire more picks (preferably a second rounder).
In my opinion, this is what the Chiefs should do.
With this being one of the deepest wide receiver drafts in a while, the Chiefs should try to get their second round pick back. I am not a proponent of moving out of the first round completely, but if there is a team that wants to move back into the first round or a team towards the end of the first round that wants to move up, the Chiefs should try to get a second round pick out of it. If they cannot get a second round pick out of a trade, I would be okay with a third round pick.
In this draft the Chiefs have one first round pick, one third round pick, one fourth round pick, one fifth round pick, and two sixth round picks. The seventh round pick was traded to the Dallas Cowboys along with Edgar Jones.
This draft is extremely important for the Kansas City Chiefs. They need to add difference makers in a draft class that has been regarded as one of the best in a while. It is in my opinion that the Chiefs need to add more picks in an attempt to add more talented players to this roster. You win championships through the draft, not through free agency.