One overlooked angle that comes with the fact that the Kansas City Chiefs are selecting at the highest point in the annual NFL Draft since 2013 is the financial side of it all. A higher draft choice means a higher monetary commitment, and when discussing the earliest selections, that cost increass exponentially.
No one thinks too much about the salary cap implications of a player taken at No. 32 overall, and certainly not in any round later than the first. However, the Chiefs sit at No. 9 overall which brings with it serious cap considerations. Not that the money involved should dictate who the Chiefs take, but it's an unavoidable part of the conversation.
Rookies sign slotted contracts these days, thanks to the collective bargaining agreement, which means every pick in the 2026 NFL Draft already knows how much he will make for the next four years, for the most part. Whoever the Chiefs take with the ninth pick will find himself on the receiving end of a four-year deal worth $31,109,092 overall, which computes to a $7.78 million average annual value with a signing bonus of just over $19 million.
Picking ninth overall forces the Chiefs to confront the financial realities of the draft in a way they have not faced in more than a decade.
For some perspective, that yearly hit of just shy of $8 million would have ranked that prospect as the eighth-highest cap hit on the entire team. That's north of Kristian Fulton and south of Mike Danna, and while we could talk at length about the financial hits of both of those two players in particular, the truth is that whoever is taken is going to be a top-10 cap hit for a good while.
How does that affect the discussion? It's safe to wonder whether this has any bearing on the idea of taking a running back. Some fans flinch at the idea of paying top-of-the-market value to a running back like Breece Hall. But consider that Hall is projected to average $10.4 million in average market value. Some of those same fans would be just fine with Jeremiyah Love at pick No. 9, and yet the financial hit is nearly the same.
Would the Chiefs be better off paying a bit more for a top-shelf free agent and then using the pick on a wide receiver, where the likes of Alec Pierce are going to net more than $20 million annually? What about an edge rusher, where Kwity Paye is estimated to have a market value going on $18 million every year? The points are worth making.
If the Chiefs are enamored with Love (in love with Love?), then general manager Brett Veach should do what he needs to do. Raising the floor (and ceiling) at the skill positions is of utmost importance this offseason. However, structuring the team to fit together financially is a major part of the equation when roster-building and that's certainly true for someone who is going to be a major portion of the cap.