KC Chiefs: Ranking every first-round pick since 2000

2. Eric Berry

Speaking of generational talents, Eric Berry was the single best pick by general manager Scott Pioli during his tenure with the team as general manager. While those years weren’t kind in general to the Chiefs franchise, Berry’s selection was an incredible achievement as a field general who was a Hall of Fame talent from the outset at safety.

In case you forgot, Berry was taken at No. 5 overall in the 2010 NFL Draft, the earliest a safety had ever been taken in draft history. But the Tennessee product didn’t disappoint. Instead, he started all 16 games of his rookie campaign and dominated even at the pro level with a Pro Bowl year marked by 4 interceptions, 92 total tackles, 1 forced fumble and 2 sacks.

There might be some naysayers here saying that Berry is listed too high and herein lies the tension—it all depends on how you factor in longevity. However, there’s no question that Berry was the best defender drafted by the Chiefs in a very, very long time—perhaps since Derrick Johnson—and when he was healthy, he had no peer at his position. So few players could suffer such extreme injuries—from a torn ACL to a Hodgkins lymphoma diagnosis—and still return to All-Pro form.

Berry made the Pro Bowl in every single season he was healthy for a full year, and he was named first-team All-Pro on three of those occasions. He was a ballhawk with blitzing skills who excelled in every aspect, and he was a leader of men on and off the field. Others on this list, including those coming up next, might have put together a greater body of work based on availability, but we suspect that even those players would defer to the talents of Berry in the end.