2022 NFL Draft crushes for the Kansas City Chiefs
Complete Luxury Picks
These two prospects are great, but they would be a total splurge for the Kansas City Chiefs. While I would prefer they target other positions, I can’t deny that these two guys are my absolute favorites at their positions and wouldn’t be outraged if the Chiefs took one of them at the end of the fourth round. If either of these guys slide all the way to the 7th round, I would jump at the chance to take them.
Bailey Zappe – Quarterback – Western Kentucky
Consensus Big Board Ranking: #162 (5th Round)
Do the Chiefs need a quarterback in this draft? Of course not, but let’s say they think Patrick Mahomes is experienced enough that he no longer needs a veteran backup like Chad Henne around. That would allow them to target a higher upside young guy to develop. Maybe that guy turns into someone that could be a real asset if Mahomes misses time. Maybe he looks good enough in limited action that the Chiefs could flip him for a valuable draft pick. We’ve seen Andy Reid do that before.
In a draft where I just don’t like almost any of the quarterbacks that I’ve watched (admittedly I haven’t done a true deep dive on any of them), Bailey Zappe of Western Kentucky is the one guy that intrigues me. Zappe threw for almost 6,000 yards and 62 touchdowns last season. While he doesn’t have a very strong arm, he still was accurate at all levels of the field. He makes smart and fast decisions and spreads the ball around with good feel and touch. I don’t think he’ll ever be a top end starter, but I think he’ll have a Case Keenum-ish type career.
Matt Araiza – Punter – San Diego State
Consensus Big Board Ranking: #175 (5th/6th Round)
Matt Araiza, or the “Punt God,” is probably the most intriguing punter prospect to come out in my lifetime. The guy can absolutely bomb punts 80 yards and completely flip the field. He’s athletic and loves to make tackles on returners and was even San Diego State’s place kicker, so he will give his new team an insurance policy at kicker too. The only knock on his game right now is that he isn’t as accurate at pinning punts back near the endzone as you would like for a punter that may very well go in the top 150 picks of the draft. However, with Araiza likely now focusing on just punting I would hope his accuracy would improve. If that happens he may quite literally be the greatest punter we’ve ever seen.
Do the Chiefs NEED a new punter? No, probably not, but it would be fun to be able to flip the field on those occasions when the offense sputters and doesn’t go anywhere. There would be a fun mental edge there with opponents thinking “So even when we get Mahomes and the offense to go three and out they have a punter that booms it 70 yards and flips the field?!” Again, I’m not saying he’d be the guy I’d target for the Chiefs at the end of the 4th round, but if I’m being honest, I wouldn’t hate it either.
Now let’s get to some players that I really would like to see the Chiefs draft, even if some fans don’t think KC should target this next position.