Chiefs draft 2017: John Dorsey details the trade for Kareem Hunt
By Matt Conner
Kansas City Chiefs general manager John Dorsey details the trade to move up for Toledo running back Kareem Hunt in the third round.
John Dorsey admits that Kareem Hunt is a notch below the top tier of running backs available in this year’s NFL Draft. The Toledo running back has stood in the shadows of Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffrey all through the pre-draft season, and the Kansas City Chiefs general manager admitted it was the same ranking on the team’s draft board. However, after the top tier, it was Hunt and no one else.
“You could see that where we were positioned at that particular round, we had to go up or else we would have not have gotten that running back, so we decided to go up,” said Dorsey in a press conference to explain the Chiefs picks on day two. “I was sitting there and I said, ‘We have to go up and get this running back. Otherwise, we’re gonna miss out. Take out the top tier running backs, this was the next best guy.”
Dorsey traded the Chiefs’ third round pick (No. 104 overall), their fourth-round pick (No. 132) and their seventh-round pick (No. 245) to move up 18 spots in the third round with the Vikings.
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Hunt entered the NFL Draft as Toledo’s all-time leading rusher and came in fresh off of an impressive Senior Bowl performance, where he was named Outstanding Player on the North roster. Specifically, Dorsey kept praising Hunt’s “contact balance” and the fact that he lost a single fumble in his collegiate career as reasons for moving up.
“He’s not a Jamaal Charles 4.4 guy, but I could compare some other really good running backs that have played this game that he’s pretty comparable to. His greatest thing is, when he makes contact with the defender, he’s got incredible contact balance, as they say, where the legs continue to move and he’s getting positive yards.
“We really like his running style, his contact balance, his ability to run the ball. He had 48 receptions this year. Early on, he weighed a little bit heavier than he normally does, then he goes to the Senior Bowl and displays, at 206 pounds, that he’s a hard man to stop. He’s a pretty good running back. You guys will like him.”
Dorsey says he believes Hunt will settle into a playing weight from 215 to 218 pounds after working with the Chiefs training staff.