Kansas City Chiefs check out NFL Draft’s top kicker Zane Gonzalez

The biggest question facing Gonzalez isn’t whether or not he is the best kicker or even will he be drafted. In fact, the biggest question isn’t about Gonzalez himself at all. Rather, it’s about how early a team should be taking a kicker in the first place. The Raiders took Sebastian Janikowski in the first round in one of the most famous and memorable picks in draft history back in 2000. Most recently the Tampa Bay Buccaneers took Roberto Aguayo in the second round just last year.

As for the Chiefs, recent history suggests they can find their kickers late. Cairo Santos was an undrafted free agent who signed with the Chiefs in 2014 and has been the team’s kicker ever since. Ryan Succop was the kicker for years before that and signed on as the team’s seventh round selection. Santos made 88.6% of his field goals last season, so the Chiefs don’t necessarily need a kicker, nor do they need to be forced to take one so early.

That said, Santos is in the last year of his contract with the Chiefs and is earning nearly $1.8 million in 2017. There’s zero penalty if the team decides to release Santos, in case they want to save a bit of money. On the financial side, let’s say Gonzalez lasts until the fourth round and is selected by the Chiefs. The slot money allotted for that round is $2.92 million for a four-year deal, per Spotrac, which gives Gonzalez a potential cap hit for 2017 at $606K.

The Chiefs are going to have to make a decision on Santos’ long-term standing with the team at some point in the near future anyway. If they find a kicker they like and the value makes sense in the draft, it wouldn’t surprise to see the Chiefs draft the first kicker of the John Dorsey era.