In a week, the excitement for the 2026 NFL Draft will be built to a boiling point. The Kansas City Chiefs have an exciting opening night to work through with the ninth-overall and 29th-overall selections.
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As we draw to the close of this year’s pre-draft process, everyone has a player or two they prefer as their favorite team’s pick.
If you ask me, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs has the potential to be an All-Pro player, regardless of where he is drafted next week,
but Kansas City may be the perfect spot.
Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo relies on a do-it-all, playmaking safety to bring out his best, most chaotic third-down game plans. Downs was trusted in a similar role in the Buckeyes’ defense during the 2025 season, constantly moving around before the snap with the intention to confuse the quarterback and disguise the defense’s coverage.
It’s something Spagnuolo has trusted former safeties Tyrann Mathieu and Justin Reid to do — even cornerback Trent McDuffie. They can roam near the line of scrimmage, threaten to blitz, and have the feel and instincts to drop back into a standard coverage responsibility without putting themselves in a bad spot.
Downs can do much more than hunt from the box; that just may be what he’s best at. Downs has the positional versatility to rotate into deep coverage and take away downfield passes.
There are other playmaking safeties to think about later in the draft, but to me, there’s very little doubt Downs would quickly become one of the biggest factors towards the team’s success in 2026 and beyond.
Which draft prospect do you believe the most in, specifically in a Chiefs uniform? Are there prospects projected to be taken later in the draft who you feel strongly about? Let us know in the comments.
