The NFL Draft has officially completed rounds one through three, and with that came some surprises and some "chalky" picks. Many of the surprises centered around the quarterback position, thanks to Miami QB Cam Ward going No. 1 overall and Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders falling all the way out of the first round.
Now it's Day Three, and the Chiefs have a handful of picks they need to utilize in the best ways possible. They've already secured the offensive trenches with their first-round pick: Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons. Now they have several other holes to fill with their later picks—an area where GM Brett Veach has often found diamonds in the rough. Could one of them be Patrick Mahomes' next long-term backup?
Adding a quarterback at this point in the Chiefs' dynasty might seem a little boneheaded, but with the talent that's been pushed to Day 3 due to the depth at DT, RB, and OL in this draft, it might not be such a bad idea to strengthen the quarterback room. The last time the Chiefs did something similar was back in 2021, when they grabbed Shane Buechele out of SMU immediately after the draft ended.
Since then, they've gone through multiple backup QBs, including Carson Wentz last year, Blaine Gabbert the year before, and Chad Henne in the early years of Mahomes' career. That list also includes younger guys like Buechele, Chris Oladokun, and even Bailey Zappe. At the moment, the Chiefs have journeyman Gardner Minshew II on a one-year deal, which makes a late-round QB pick on Saturday even more of a possibility.
Selecting a QB with one of the Chiefs' last few picks—possibly even making him "Mr. Irrelevant" with the final selection—could provide long-term stability in the quarterback room once names like Minshew and Oladokun inevitably move on. That’s important for many reasons—just look at Week 18 of last season—but that importance is rarely seen on the field compared to the immediate impact that receivers, linemen, and other positions bring.
Here are a few names that could look good on a Chiefs draft card late on Saturday:
Graham Mertz - Florida / Wisconsin
Graham Mertz is an experienced QB with four full seasons (three at Wisconsin, one at Florida) as a starter—not including last year, when an ACL injury cut short his final season of a six-year college football career. Mertz has good vision and finished third in all of college football in completion percentage (72.9%) in 2023 when healthy, giving him some upside as a solid backup.
Mertz has a great touch, stands strong in the pocket, and excels at the short-to-intermediate throws that Andy Reid and Matt Nagy have emphasized with Mahomes in recent seasons. His biggest issues are identifying lurking defenders and reading or predicting blitzes at the line—something even Mahomes admitted took him years to master.
The early injury history is a concern, but with it came extra time on the sideline with coaches, allowing Mertz to see the offense from a new perspective. That will help him exponentially if he finds himself on the sidelines watching Mahomes dissect defenses.
One thing Reid and Veach will like about Mertz, especially if they pick him as Mr. Irrelevant or slightly earlier, is that he rarely makes the deadly mistakes that backups can be prone to. He finished his final 28 games with a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 45:15, showing that decision-making is one of his strengths.
Cam Miller - North Dakota State
Name a more perfect pair than Coach Reid and a random skill player out of small school programs like North Dakota State University (NDSU). He took a chance last season on a former NDSU quarterback (Wentz), and it wasn't all that great, but Cam Miller is a much different story.
Miller has been praised for his footwork and his comfort level in the pocket, and it's allowed him to flourish with the Bison over the past four years, which ended with four straight FCS Championship appearances and two more title trophies in the trophy case. So he's a proven winner, even if it's only at the FCS level, and that is something that has transferred over to the NFL in recent history.
This final season at NDSU was his best, throwing 33 touchdowns and just four interceptions on a 73.5% completion percentage with a QB rating of over 180. Miller showed true growth over every season, too, by throwing 500+ more yards season after season since 2021, after the Bison's first FCS championship with him under center.
Miller's strengths rely on a good pocket, something he's had for four years, which means he's going to have to learn what to do when that NFL speed comes around the edges two to three seconds faster than in North Dakota. He's also got a great quick-release throw, but when he needs to load up and throw it deep, that's when his high-level accuracy starts to waver.
Miller would be a great long-term backup for Mahomes, especially in an offensive system that NDSU mimics at times throughout every game. Not only that, his extra years of experience might prove to be what Reid and Veach prefer, considering the revolving door of older QBs that have backed up Mahomes these past few years.
Brady Cook - Missouri
Brady Cook works for a lot of reasons, starting with the fact that he's a homegrown type of talent who grew up in St. Louis and stuck around in Missouri to play as a Tiger for five seasons, with the last three serving as a full-time starter. The past two saw Cook lead Mizzou to double-digit wins and two straight bowl wins, including one in the Cotton Bowl over Ohio State.
Cook is extremely well-rounded, showing strengths all over the field both in the pocket and outside of the pocket. The 2024 Music City Bowl MVP (287 passing yards, 54 rushing yards, two TDs) is poised in the pocket and rarely gives up on the play no matter how dire it feels behind the line of scrimmage.
In the pocket, out of the pocket, it doesn't matter much to Cook as he looked almost as comfortable throwing on the run as he did in a clean pocket. Those plays towards the sidelines are really what will grab scouts' attention, showing off his arm strength, but his scrambling and rushing abilities are really what make him an interesting project.
Veach would likely have to get Cook well before the final pick of the draft, especially considering he's ranked as a fifth-round talent in many scouting reports and mock drafts. But once again, the stability at QB2 is showing to be extremely important in the league heading into the future, and the opportunity to imprint Reid and Mahomes' knowledge on a quarterback for years will help if he's ever needed.
Cook's size (6'2", 217 lbs) is great for a running quarterback, but when he's forced to pass, his decision-making and accuracy start to fade. Also, when forced to stick in the pocket, he starts to stare at his targets, and he can't look off many defenders.
With all that said, Mahomes had similar attributes coming out of Texas Tech with a more refined and stronger arm, so perhaps Reid, Nagy, and the rest of the offensive staff could coach him into a great backup.
No matter who or what the Chiefs do with their last few draft picks, including the final pick of the draft, bringing in a young quarterback to back up Mahomes for at least two to three years would help develop some consistency in the QB room that hasn't been there since Chad Henne retired.