The idea of two teams with two first-round picks trading each of those for the other before an NFL Draft feels like a ridiculous exercise. But the idea has a little steam, at least here at Arrowhead Addict, so perhaps there's something to it after all.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys are two of several teams that own two first-round picks apiece in what is already a weirder-than-normal draft class. The Chiefs own No. 9 overall (thanks to a miserable season) as well as No. 29 (thanks to the Trent McDuffie trade). The Cowboys sit at No. 12 and then No. 20. For the sake of their respective draft interests, more than one person has all four selections changing hands—including Peter Schrager in his latest mock draft.
Schrager has released his final mock projections for the 2026 NFL Draft on the eve of the actual event, and he has Kansas City making its picks when Dallas was scheduled to weigh in. The Cowboys' interest in moving into a top-10 position is the ability to secure an elite cornerback in Mansoor Delane for a secondary in need. That slide back to No. 12 would give the Chiefs a much more premium position with their second pick instead of waiting until the bottom of the round.
Peter Schrager is not the only one projecting that Dallas and Kansas City could trade lunches at the NFL Draft table.
At No. 12 overall, the Chiefs somehow still get their man in Miami (Fl.) defensive end Rueben Bain Jr. It feels as if Chiefs Kingdom would be just fine if the Chiefs actually moved up to get Bain in this draft class, so the ability to slide back and do the same would be seen as a massive win for general manager Brett Veach.
The potential addition of Bain would ease most of the concerns on the defensive side for the Chiefs. Yes, the secondary needs more bodies, but the Chiefs have several more draft choices available to them to alleviate those concerns. Meanwhile, the single biggest roster need was a running mate for George Karlaftis on the opposite side, and Bain is an instant plus starter up front at a thin position.
The slide back, however, robbed K.C. of the chance to take one of the draft's top wide receivers in Arizona State's Jordyn Tyson, which makes the selection of Indiana wideout Omar Cooper Jr. a nice way to ease that pain. Cooper is a tier below the draft's top pass-catchers, but he comes with championship experience and should be an instant contributor in an offense that needs more sure things in the short- and long-term.
This idea of four first-round choices moving around in the same deal is made even more interesting by the fact that Schrager is not the only one thinking it. Our own Scott Loring proposed the same idea in his latest hypothetical trade for the Chiefs. He hoped to actually double up on offense and provide Patrick Mahomes with more firepower than ever as he comes into the second half of his career. The idea of grabbing a receiver like Tyson or USC's Makai Lemon to go along with Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq would put the Chiefs' offense over the top.
More than one person is thinking that the Chiefs and Cowboys might be keen on doing the NFL draft version of two middle-school kids trading their lunches. Maybe they're right. Depending on the way the draft order falls and which prospects remain, it might behoove both franchises to shuffle the order and make things very interesting on the draft's first night.
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