CBS mock draft wastes KC Chiefs picks on unnecessary positions

The latest mock draft from Chris Trapasso of CBS Sports is a three-round entry that shows faces what the first two days of the upcoming 2021 NFL Draft class could resemble for each team. For fans of the K.C. Chiefs, it’s a look at a rookie class that would feature some rather head-scratching investments up top, especially given positional needs and current assets already on the roster.

Perhaps Trapasso is onto something in his latest mock, but most draft analysts are keen to give the Chiefs one of a few typically-listed positions. Most mocks feature an offensive tackle, pass rusher, and/or wide receiver among the very first players taken in the draft. Perhaps a cornerback will be squeezed in here and there, along with an interior lineman, but for the most part, those are the primary needs addressed—especially in the first round.

However, the latest mock from Trapasso looks much different. Up top, the Chiefs stick at No. 31 overall in the first round and take Alabama defensive tackle Christian Barmore. He writes, “Barmore and Chris Jones would give the Chiefs two big, pass-rushing specialists at defensive tackle.”

That sounds good on paper. Who wouldn’t want yet another impact player along the defensive line in order to bolster the team’s pass rush? However, not only does this mean the Chiefs are ignoring any of the aforementioned needs, but they are also loading up Barmore along a defensive line that already has Jones, Jarran Reed, Derrick Nnadi, Turk Wharton, and Khalen Saunders.

The latest mock draft from CBS Sports essentially focuses on luxury picks over real needs.

Barmore might be an impact player able to keep some rotational guys from playing, which would elevate the line overall, but creating an elite corps at one position only to completely abandon others makes little sense. The next two players drafted by Trapasso are tackles Alex Leatherwood and Samuel Cosmi, both of which would make much greater sense than going with Barmore here.

In the second round, Trapasso goes with tight end Pat Freiermuth of Penn State. The Chiefs certainly lack high-ceiling talent behind Travis Kelce, and yes, they did come into this offseason with a stated goal of getting help for Travis Kelce at the position. But using a second round pick on a tight end is not only irresponsible, but it sounds downright silly after using the first pick along the defensive interior. In short, upgrading from Blake Bell isn’t necessarily top of the list of things to do. Interior linemen Wyatt Davis and Ben Cleveland are mocked shortly after this and would have made much better selections.

In the third round, Trapasso gives Vanderbilt pass rusher Dayo Odeyingbo to the Chiefs at the bottom of the third round and this is the first pick that could really pay dividends for the Chiefs at a position of need. The Chiefs could use another rotational rusher immediately, and for the long-term, finding a partner opposite Frank Clark to anchor the base line is important—not to mention the need for cost-controlled impact talent here.

Trapasso’s first choice would take at least a year to show major impact, and the second would be more of a security blanket in case Kelce were to hit the wall with age or become injured. While there’s a nice find in the third round here, this would essentially be a very frustrating draft for most of Chiefs Kingdom who are hoping to see Brett Veach inject key positions with much-needed talent. There would have to be strong internal conviction about the futures of both Barmore and Freiermuth and even then it would be hard to convince anyone outside of Arrowhead of those choices.