Mock drafts look a bit different these days for Kansas City Chiefs. With the team sitting at 5-4 overall and just outside of the current playoff picture—should the NFL season end today—various mocks have K.C. picking much earlier than what fans are used to.
At this point, Kansas City would have the No. 17 overall selection in the first round of the 2026 NFL DRaft, which would be both shocking and sad for Chiefs Kingdom after years and years of end-of-round picks. The upside is that general manager Brett Veach would have his choice of brighter prospects, but sitting around in January while other teams continue to play is not worth the trade.
Alas, that's a concern for another time. Looking at the latest mock from Pro Football Focus, it's heartening to see others identifying what the Chiefs need most: more juice in the pass rush. Trevor Sikkema's latest mock brings an exciting new edge to the Chiefs in the middle of the first round: T.J. Parker from Clemson. Here's what Sikkema has to say.
"Like his teammate, Peter Woods, Parker should not be overlooked just because Clemson isn’t having the season many predicted. He is still a strong, fast edge defender with good size at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds and an all-around game, evidenced by his 81.1 PFF run-defense grade and 73.8 PFF pass-rush grade against true pass sets."
It should come as no surprise that mock drafts are pointing to the Chiefs' pass rush as a major need.
Parker has only 6 tackles for loss and 2 sacks this season, but he was coming off of a sophomore season in which he had 19.5 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks. Parker's progression has been exciting to watch through the years, although some momentum has been lost in Clemson's frustrations.
The Chiefs are looking at free-agent departures of Charles Omenihu and Malik Herring with a major decision to make on the $11.1 million due Mike Danna next season. Felix Anudike-Uzomah will be coming back from injury but it'd be irresponsible to count on anything there, leaving George Karlaftis and Ashton Gillotte as the only sure things entering 2026.
Bringing in a high-ceiling edge is essential for the Chiefs this season to counter Chris Jones' declining skill set with age and the team's overreliance on him for years. Whether that's Parker or someone else remains to be seen, but if K.C. has to sit in January, it can likely be blamed on the lack of disruption