2022 NFL Draft crushes for the Kansas City Chiefs

Running Backs

While the Chiefs should be fine at running back next season with Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Ronald Jones, they don’t currently have the long term solution at the position in place. Jones is just on a one year contract and CEH hasn’t proven himself worthy of a second contract in Kansas City through his first two seasons. While I wouldn’t take a running back in the first two rounds, by the time we get into the third round there are two guys that I absolutely would love for the Chiefs to draft if they were still available.

James Cook – Georgia – 5-foot-11 – 199 pounds
Consensus Big Board Ranking: #98 (3rd/4th Round)

Even if you’re not a fan of the Chiefs taking a running back in round three, I think you should be open to the idea of them drafting James Cook. Dalvin Cook’s little brother isn’t the same every down style of back, but he may have even better big play upside. Cook is a home run threat “scat back” who can even line up wide and run routes like a wide receiver. This is why I think even typical “no running backs” fans could get on board with Cook.

We all know that the Chiefs can’t replace Tyreek Hill with one player, but Cook could be a piece of the puzzle when it comes to replacing his production. Having someone like Cook on the roster who is a home run threat that can line up in the backfield and take a handoff or motion out wide and beat people deep puts stress on a defense. He may not be a 20+ touches per game type of back, but he’s a weapon that the Chiefs could utilize in a lot of ways from the second he takes the field as a rookie.

Dameon Pierce – Florida – 5-foot-10 – 218 pounds
Consensus Big Board Ranking: #86 (3rd Round)

Dear “don’t draft a running back” Chiefs fans, how would you have felt about the Chiefs trading a 3rd round draft pick for Kareem Hunt instead of signing Ronald Jones? If you would have been happy with that, what if I told you that the Chiefs could draft almost the exact same player, but he’s four years younger and K.C. would only have to pay him a fraction of what they would Hunt? If that sounds tempting, then let me introduce you to Dameon Pierce.

Pierce is literally the exact same size and build as Hunt. They ran almost identical 40 times. They both utilize a strong lower half, low center of gravity, and outstanding contact balance to break tackles and extend runs. They both overcome average timed long speed with good vision and burst to get where they need to go. While Pierce was criminally underused in Florida, especially in the passing game, he’s shown good hands and the strength and desire to be a good pass protector with some coaching. I think Pierce will be the steal of this draft when it comes to running backs and I’d love to see the Chiefs land Kareem Hunt 2.0 in the third round.

Now we get to a position where I think all Chiefs fans agree that the Chiefs need to draft someone.