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2026 NFL draft: Kiper’s Round 1 winners, losers, value picks | ESPN
Questionable picks and reaches from Round 1
Kansas City Chiefs
The pick: Mansoor Delane (No. 6), Peter Woods (No. 29)
There’s a lot to unpack here. First, we have to recognize that the Chiefs gave third- and fifth-round picks to Cleveland to move up to No. 6 to even make this pick. I had Delane as the No. 14 prospect on my board, so it feels like a slight reach. It’s an aggressive move for a team that hasn’t entered a draft with a top-10
pick since 2013.
But on the other hand, Kansas City had a massive cornerback problem after trading Trent McDuffie and letting Jaylen Watson walk in free agency. And with the medical concerns around Jermod McCoy’s knee, there wasn’t another elite CB1 on the board this year. It was no lock that Delane would be there at No. 9, especially with the Commanders and Saints picking ahead of the Chiefs. Delane is instinctive and has ball-hawking coverage skills (eight interceptions over his career). He is a day one starter. But between the reach and the draft capital headed to the Browns, I’m not sure this was the savviest move.
With their second pick, the Chiefs got Woods to line up next to Chris Jones. Denzel Boston and Missouri edge rusher Zion Young were the two best players on the board at that point, and they both would have hit needs. Instead Kansas City rolled the dice on an interior lineman whose 2025 production (two sacks) didn’t match his talent. If defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo can coach him up, maybe this looks great in a few years. But I saw more consistent prospects at positions of need sitting there for the taking.
Five thoughts on the Chiefs selecting cornerback LSU Mansoor Delane at No. 6 | The Kansas City Star
1. The Trent McDuffie fallout
There will be a through-line from the Chiefs trading All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Rams this offseason in exchange for draft picks — and then using draft picks to acquire a cornerback.
It’s there. The McDuffie trade created an obvious need.
But if you’re confused about what amounts to moving McDuffie, a proven player, out of the building and bringing Delane in, consider one other aspect:
Money.
McDuffie signed a 4-year, $125 million contract in Los Angeles, the richest for a cornerback in league history.
Delane will sign in the neighborhood of a four-year, $42 million deal with a $27 million signing bonus. The Chiefs have to hope that’s the only difference — that their play is far more similar than their pay.
And when you make a move to sixth overall, the pressure is on for it to work.
It has to.
Tornado sirens send Chiefs draft staff scrambling for shelter before making their first-round pick | Associated Press
The Kansas City Chiefs nearly had to make one of their draft picks Thursday night while seeking shelter from a tornado.
Sirens sounded amid a tornado warning just before the Chiefs went on the clock with the second of their two first-round selections, forcing the front-office staff to huddle in their draft room. Reporters and other staff who were in the training complex retreated to an inner hallway away from windows, where a wall-mounted TV was showing the draft as it happened.
“The draft room is in the middle of the building,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “It’s actually one of the shelter spots.”
Edge rusher:
Texas A&M EDGE Cashius Howell
Oklahoma EDGE R Mason Thomas
Clemson EDGE T.J. Parker
Missouri EDGE Zion Young
Illinois EDGE Gabe Jacas
Michigan EDGE Derrick Moore
Penn State EDGE Dani Dennis-Sutton
Texas Tech EDGE Romello Height
Alabama EDGE LT Overton
Michigan EDGE Jaishawn Barham
Tennessee EDGE Joshua Josephs
Western Michigan EDGE Nadame Tucker
Central Michigan EDGE Michael HeldmanThe Chiefs didn’t address the edge rusher position in Round 1, but that shouldn’t exactly surprise after Brett Veach said he liked the depth of this class throughout the draft. There are still plenty of impactful options on Day 2, and one of these players feels like the likely pick at No. 40.
Around the NFL
In what was by far the most shocking move of the NFL draft, the Rams selected Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson — a player many analysts considered a second-round pick.
While the move was confounding at best, Snead tried his best to sound optimistic when speaking with the media late Thursday night.
“I think it’s been a process that started in the offseason, per se, especially when [head coach] Sean [McVay] and the coaching staff got involved,” Snead said when asked when they knew Alabama QB Ty Simpson was their selection. “That process goes all the way up until even into the latter parts of last week. Then at that point in time, like I’ve mentioned here, the sea is going to shape the 13th pick you. You had to fall.”
However, one person didn’t appear as optimistic as Snead: head coach Sean McVay.
In a video that’s now gone viral, McVay showed shockingly little enthusiasm when discussing Simpson. He seemed annoyed for most of the press conference, rarely smiling and lacking the normal zeal and passion he usually speaks with.
But, there was one thing McVay made sure everyone in attendance knew: this is still reigning MVP Matthew Stafford’s team.
“There were a lot of players that we liked but when you do look at it, I think the thing you liked about the body of work is…let’s make one thing clear, this is Matthew’s team.
Gang Green added an explosive pass rusher with its first pick on Thursday night to give Aaron Glenn’s defense a needed pop. Later, they added two much-needed weapons to the offense.
The New York Jets selected Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey with the No. 2 overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh. Gang Green later landed two playmakers for the offense, selecting dynamic Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq at No. 16 and then trading back into the first round to nab Indiana wideout Omar Cooper Jr. with the 30th pick.
“I think it’s something that I’ve talked about before is, when you have targets, you identify guys you like, you love, you go get them,” Glenn said in his post-draft news conference when asked how making three first-round picks could accelerate a rebuild, via team transcript. “And that’s exactly what we did today. And any time you can bring guys with a winning background on your team, that only helps the morale of your team. So, there’s a lot of thing that goes into that, but man to get three first round picks and the caliber guys that we got, the personality, the mentality, the football character, all those things are huge, bringing those guys on our team.”
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Mansoor Delane says Chiefs ‘made the best move in the draft’ taking him
What makes this pick even more compelling is how quietly it all came together.
Unlike many top picks, Delane didn’t have a long list of visits or obvious signals pointing to Kansas City. In fact, from his perspective, the Chiefs stayed relatively under the radar.
“Yeah, a little bit,” Delane said, on his pre-draft contact with the team. “I had a Zoom call with them.”
“But I was wondering,” Delane admitted about the Chiefs as he went through the pre-draft process. “I know some people did visit with them, so I was like, okay, at least they do do 30 visits.”
“I guess maybe they don’t want me,” Delane expressed.
They did — enough to trade three picks for a three-spot rise in the top 10.
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