The 2026 NFL Draft is only a couple of weeks away, and speculation about who the Kansas City Chiefs will pick is at an all-time high. Should the Chiefs trade up to secure a top pass rusher? How crazy is it to consider an offensive tackle early in the draft? Do the Chiefs need a day-one starter at cornerback, or can they take one later and rely on their coaching staff to turn them into a future starter? Is a wide receiver a primary or secondary need for KC with guys like Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy currently on the roster? The questions are almost endless.Â
All of those questions are valid ones too, with justifiable arguments to be made on both sides. However, there is one position where the Chiefs have a significant need that is getting little to no buzz around their top three draft picks, and that is linebacker. Linebacker isn't a flashy position, and it's understandable that it is overshadowed by KC's need for a starting-caliber edge player who can rush the passer. However, you can make a strong argument that linebacker is the only position where KC has a starting position open without anyone currently on the roster with any kind of experience to fill that spot.
Yes, the Chiefs need a pass rusher, and that is a more premium positional need, but at least Ashton Gillotte and Felix Anudike-Uzomah have played meaningful NFL snaps before. Yes, cornerback is a need with the loss of Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, but Nohl Williams played over 450 defensive snaps as a rookie. Kristian Fulton has a streak of four consecutive seasons with more than 600 defensive snaps before missing a lot of last season. Similarly, free-agent signing Kader Kohou had three straight seasons with more than 700 defensive snaps.
Linebacker is the Chiefs' quietest but clearest roster hole
Meanwhile, the Chiefs lost linebacker Leo Chenal in free agency this offseason. Chenal played at least 440 defensive snaps in each of the previous three seasons, and the Chiefs don't have anyone with any significant playing experience to fill that hole. They didn't sign anyone in free agency, and the young players on their roster got little to no playing time last season. Jack Cochrane had the "most" defensive snaps with 61, followed by undrafted rookie Cooper McDonald with 57, and then fifth-round draft pick Jeffrey Bassa with 39.
Maybe the Chiefs feel good about one of those options potentially stepping into Chenal's role, but it seems unlikely. Cochrane has the most experience of the group but has been more of a special teamer and hasn't looked great in his limited defensive reps. Bassa has the draft capital behind him but didn't even out-snap fellow rookie McDonald and, skillset-wise, seems better suited for Drue Tranquill's role. McDonald might actually fit best from a physical profile, but handing a starting job to a second-year undrafted player who only played 57 defensive snaps last year seems like a huge risk.
To make the linebacker need even more pressing, Drue Tranquill is only under contract for this coming season, and he's 31 years old, and his play did drop off some last season. So linebacker is undeniably one of the bigger needs on this team, and there has been very little discussion of KC using one of their top three picks on the position. Yes, the Chiefs could wait and address more "premium" positions with their top 40 picks, but when they need someone to start now AND long-term, your chances of hitting on the player you draft decrease the longer you wait.
This draft class offers multiple early answers at linebacker
So if the Chiefs could use a day-one contributor at linebacker, does this draft class have players that line up with those needs in the top 40 picks? Fortunately for KC, it absolutely does. First, there is a small chance that arguably the best pure linebacker in this class, Sonny Styles, could slide to the Chiefs at pick No. 9. That may not be highly likely, but if he did make it to KC, it would be hard to imagine he wouldn't be the top player on KC's board. If that doesn't happen, then there are still really good options for the Chiefs to consider at picks 29 and 40.
The following four linebacker prospects are all listed between 32 and 52 on consensus big boards. They are listed below with their college, height, weight, age when drafted, and average consensus big board ranking.
- C.J. Allen - Georgia - 6'1" - 230 lbs - 21 years old - 33.7 avg. consensus ranking
- Jacob Rodriguez - Texas Tech - 6'1" - 231 lbs - 23 years old - 45.7 avg. consensus ranking
- Anthony Hill Jr. - Texas - 6'2" - 238 lbs - 21 years old - 46 avg. consensus ranking
- Jake Golday - Cincinnati - 6'4" - 239 lbs - 22 years old - 50.7 avg. consensus ranking
It is not unusual for C.J. Allen, Jacob Rodriguez, and occasionally even Anthony Hill Jr. to show up in the first round of mock drafts, sometimes as early as pick No. 20 to the Dallas Cowboys. Allen, Rodriguez, and Hill would not be seen as a reach if the Chiefs took one of them with pick No. 29, and all four of these linebackers would be seen as quality picks at 40 overall.
Each LB prospect offers a different path to immediate help
So this draft class has prospects that fit a major position of need that should be available when the Chiefs pick at both 29 and 40 overall. All four of these prospects also fit well with the Chiefs, just in different ways based on their profiles. Despite these differences, they are all listed as "High" fits for the Chiefs in the recently released KCSN Draft Guide, and you can read their in-depth scouting reports by Price Carter by clicking on their names above. Here is my quick take on all four based on the couple of games I watched of each.
C.J. Allen would be someone with the physical strength to take some of Chenal's reps right away as a rookie. However, he profiles as a potential eventual Nick Bolton replacement who can call a defense but has better sideline-to-sideline speed than Bolton. He could also replace Tranquill next season because his coverage skills are decent, and he can stay on the field on passing downs, but the mike linebacker spot seems like his best fit.
I believe Jacob Rodriguez would be an upgrade over Drue Tranquill both as a run defender and in coverage. He isn't quite as physically imposing as Bolton is, and I don't see him as the long-term replacement there, but Rodriguez could replace Bolton on some passing downs right away. Rodriguez is a turnover-forcing machine with great energy and effort. He would be a fan favorite on day one of training camp, if for no other reason than his infectious personality and amazing mustache.
If the Chiefs are looking for a linebacker that has the highest upside of this group, that might be Anthony Hill Jr. from Texas. Hill is a violent linebacker who attacks ballcarriers and has good size and speed from sideline to sideline. He's raw in coverage but has the length and athleticism to succeed there with some coaching. I think he would give Steve Spagnuolo some options in how to deploy him while he develops, and he would probably work in Chenal's role better than Allen and Rodriguez would because he is the best blitzer of this group.
Jake Golday might be the lowest-rated of these four on the consensus big boards, but he might just be the most intriguing option for the Chiefs. Golday, like Hill, has the size and power to fill some of Chenal's role from the last few seasons. In fact, he has by far the best size and length of the group. However, he's much better in coverage coming out of college than Chenal has ever been. Cincinnati even used him as almost a hybrid linebacker/giant slot. I think, depending on how he develops, KC could use him in a number of different roles, and we all know Spags loves a guy with versatility.
While I wouldn't be surprised if KC targeted any of these four in the late first/early second round of the draft, I especially like the idea of landing either Anthony Hill Jr. or Jake Golday at pick No. 40. That would allow the Chiefs to address two other positions in the first round and then still land a potential day-one starter at linebacker early on Day 2. Regardless of which of these players they may like best, it seems like more people should be talking about KC using one of their early picks on a linebacker because the need and big board align quite nicely in this case.