What a difference a week can make, especially when talking about a mock draft, and that week is the opening week of free agency.
After an impressive start to the free agency period, the Chiefs outlook heading into the 2016 NFL Draft is very different. John Dorsey did an excellent job of eliminating a few perceived holes, and even made a major upgrade on the offensive line. There are still a few concerns for the team, notably in the secondary where the Chiefs have lost a lot of talent. In fact, without some additions, it is safe to say that Kansas City will be heavily focused on addressing the secondary in this draft.
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Unfortunately, there are many scouts who do not believe this is the draft to be looking for a ton of secondary help, especially at Safety (which is, of course, where we need the most help). After the top Corners and Safeties on the board, there doesn’t appear to be a lot of available NFL talent. However, I have definitely seen more than a few players that I think could come in and help the Chiefs in the right situations. If played out correctly, John Dorsey can capitalize on the available talent and find some very good fits for the KC defense.
I will address one thing regarding Free Agency before moving on. A lot of fans are still hot on the “re-sign Husain Abdullah” train. I just want to let you know not to get your hopes up.
Not that Abdullah isn’t a talented player…you’re talking to someone who was championing the Chiefs signing him as soon as we hired John Dorsey. No, the concern with Abdullah is one that may mean he’s hanging up his cleats. The concussion that he suffered in the latter part of the year was clearly a major one. That’s concerning enough on its own.
However, many fans do not realize that this is the same issue that ended the career of his brother, Hamza. In fact, Hamza Abdullah is one of the more vocal leaders of the efforts to get the NFL to do more about concussions and their effects. So this is very likely an issue that is very important to Husain Abdullah, and it wouldn’t be very surprising if this is enough for him to decide to retire.
Sorry, I know that’s a bit of a downer for a mock draft, but fans should be aware of and consider all the factors if they want to understand the team’s mindset. Anyways, back to the draft stuff…
For those of you looking to do your own research, here are some excellent resources, including a site where you can run your own mock draft simulation:
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/prospectrankings/2016/all
http://fanspeak.com/ontheclock/
I invite everyone to offer up their opinions own mocks in the comments section. Mock drafts are meant for interaction and discussion. There are still plenty of players I need to study up on, so I’m sure I have missed more than a few that other people are interested in.
Next: 1st Round