It's only been one season—and even that one isn't over—but the 2024 NFL Draft looks like a decent haul for the Kansas City Chiefs. From the impressive development of Xavier Worthy into a top target and the unexpected early impact of Jaden Hicks in the secondary, the Chiefs have already enjoyed the presence from such young players on a deep roster.
Going forward, there are reasons to hope for even greater returns at multiple positions. Second-round pick Kingsley Suamataia is going to compete for starting reps going forward as a young project tackle, while Jared Wiley hopes to earn playing time at a tight end position in flux after losing most of his rookie season to injury. It's also possible that C.J. Hanson or Hunter Nourzad play larger roles in the wake of offensive needs in 2025 and beyond.
One player, however, who won't be a part of that future was a late-round pick who flared out pretty quickly in sixth-round choice Kamal Hadden.
If there was a miss for the Chiefs in the 2024 NFL Draft, Hadden was it.
Hadden came to the Chiefs as an experienced cornerback out of Tennessee, giving him an impressive body of experience against top-flight competition and lots of it. The Chiefs had struck gold on several day three defensive backs in recent years, so the hope was that Hadden could join that mix and become the next L'Jarius Sneed or Jaylen Watson or even Nazeeh Johnson.
Unfortunately, Hadden's stint with the Chiefs was a short one. Hadden was released before active roster cuts were due in his first season. That in itself wasn't a major shock, but it was a surprise that the corner didn't make it to the team's practice squad. Instead, the Green Bay Packers came calling and Hadden found himself in the NFC instead.
The good news for Hadden is that he found a home in Green Bay that he might not have had with the Chiefs. This year, he was elevated for two games (Week 4 and Week 9) and was recently signed to a reserve/futures deal by the Packers to return in 2025. That's a good sign for a team that also has an impressive rate of developing defensive backs.
As for the Chiefs, they found a diamond in the rough in Christian Roland-Wallace as they continue to hang onto other young corners like Nic Jones, Eric Scott, and Darius Rush.