Laddie Morse
With the 2024 NFL Draft coming up next month, just 49 days away, it’s time to narrow down the prospects that might be available to the Kansas City Chiefs when they step up to the podium. With the positions of need including: WR, DT. CB and more, let’s begin with three players who are Wide Receivers.
.
Wide Receivers
Xavier Worthy, Texas
Everyone is all abuzz over Xavier Worthy’s 40 time of 4.21. The problem there is, not only his 165 lbs. weight, but also, he may not be available by the time the Chiefs pick.
.
.
My best take on him is that he’ll never serve as a #1 WR so the Chiefs would likely have to sign a #1 WR in Free agency to get him as a field stretcher. I imagine that’s what most Kingdom fans think he could be and is the reason they are fond of him. While we are well aware of his strengths including speed, which he does play with, DraftBuzz.com lists his weaknesses as:
.
.
Ladd McConkey, Georgia
McConkey ran the 40 in 4.39 seconds and is ranked as the 6th best WR in this class by DraftBuzz.com and the fifth best WR in this class by DrafTek.com. Ladd (great name btw) also is taller at 6-foot-0 and weighs more at 186 lbs., 20+ lns. heavier than Worthy. McConkey’s weaknesses as outlined by DraftBuzz.com include:
.
.
McConkey’s major issue may be that he has a similar skillset as Rashee Rice. However, his 4.39 speed should be able to get him consistently in space on deep patterns. One last thing about McConkey… he shares the same agent as Patrick Mahomes. Just sayin‘….
.
Adonai Mitchell, Texas
Mitchell’s first name is pronounced: “uh-donny”… so… I hope I can remember that. Mitchell ran a 4.34 – 40 yard dash which also puts him in the category of legitimate deep threat. What is amazing about Mitchell’s 40 time is, he’s 30 pounds heavier than Xavier Worthy and he’s also 3 inches taller at 6-foot-2.
.
.
However, Mitchell doesn’t always perform “fast” on game day, with that 4.34 kind of speed. Fans may not get that, but he often plays down to the DBs who are covering him. Not so with Worthy, his team mate. I’ve also heard that Mitchell will take plays off and relax when he knows the ball isn’t coming to him or his side of the field. Here’s the weaknesses of Adonai Mitchells as listed by DraftBuzz.com:
.
.
.
Defensive Tackles
The first Defensive Tackle I want to focus on comes from Missouri, Darius Robinson (DR). Robinson is 6-foot-5 and weighs in at 305 lbs.. Pairing him with Chris Jones would be amazing. CJ is 6-foot-6 and weighs in at 310 lbs.. So, if Robinson and Jones are doubled up on the inside of the Chiefs defensive rush would be nightmare cinema for those trying to stop them. At DrafTek, Robinson ranks 1st among all 5-technique defensive linemen. At DraftBuzz.com, Robinson ranks 6th among all defensive linemen. Here are Darius Robinson’s stats for his past five seasons at Missouri:
.
.
With 8.5 sacks in the 2023 season and with 14.0 Tackles for a Loss, it’s hard to imagine how good the Chiefs DL can be with those two (DR and CJ) in the mix. Also, consider that DR accomplished those stats in 12 games, in his last year there. Steve Spagnuolo must be wetting his Depends with anticipation… that is… if Robinson were to be the pick at #32.
Availability
CBS Sports says Darius Robinson is ranked as the 26th best overall prospect, consequently, he may not be there when the Chiefs select. However — and I think there’s a good chance of the following happening — if L’Jarius Sneed is traded away before the draft in late April, it may come with a 2nd round pick, and in that case, Veach may use that extra second round pick to trade up from #32 to get someone like Darius Robinson. I know, I know… too may ifs to even think about that, but since I do think about that……….
.
Braden Fiske, Florida State
Braden Fiske is 6-foot-4 inches and weighs in at 292 lbs…. and… and… Fiske had a great Combine experience. Here was his 40 yard dash at 300 lbs.:
.
.
Here’ Fiske performing the Wave Drill:
.
.
I was impressed with Braden Fiske’s energy throughout the Combine. Here are the Weaknesses of Braden Fiske as offered by DraftBuzz.com:
.
.
I offer the weaknesses of these prospects and in this case, Fiske’s weaknesses, which can all be coached out of him. Since the Chiefs have one of the best, if not the very best, coaching staff’s in the NFL, that’s important to note.
.
CBS Sports shows that 21 of the top 32 prospects are offensive players. That’s 67% offensive. The same percentage of prospects appear at DrafTek so, you better draft a defensive player while you can if you want a good one. That is, of course, assuming that all the good players are taken in round one. Since we have drafted many players in later rounds, we know that’s not the case. However, if a team really wants to focus in on taking a top shelf Defensive player, here’s where they should likely do that.
.
Bralen Trice, Washington
Trice is 6-foot-4 and weighs in at 245. He’s more than likely an Edge player who would best fit in a 4-3 defense but since were taking a stab at making the most of our picks, here we go. Trice is ranked as the 24th best overall prospect at CBS Sports and is the fifth best Edge rusher at DraftBuzz.com. Trice would give Joe Cullen another Edge rusher with Mike Danna most likely leaving the team. Steve Spagnuolo of course could flip Trice inside and use CJ and trice on the inside with FAU and George Karlaftis on the Defensive edge all rushing the passer. It makes for a formidable rushing attack.
Here are the Weaknesses that DraftBuzz lists about Trice;
.
.
Whereas other prospects can have their weaknesses coached out of them, that’s not the case with some of Bralen Trice’s weaknesses. However, there is the possibility the Trice could be the pick, so he’s listed here.
.
Corner Backs
Since DrafTek only lists four CBs in the first round, and CBS Sports only lists five, if you want to get an immediate starter at CB — especially if L’Jarius Sneed is getting traded — the first round may be where you need to fill that vacancy. On the other hand, Dave Merritt does and exceptional job with our DBs overall, so who ever the Chief take, and whenever they take them, you can bet they’ll be well coached. Besides, I hav faith in L’Jarius Sneed’s replacements in Jaylen Watson and Joshua Williams, and both have already excelled in Spags system. If K.C. does go for a CB in the first round… it could be another Missouri man:
.
Ennis Rakestraw Jr., Missouri
Ennis Rakestraw Jr. goes 5-foot-11 and tips the scales at 183 lbs.. That may be a little smallish for the Chiefs, but let’s remember Trent McDuffie is 5-11, 193. If Rakestraw become another McDuffie, or even close, then Kingdom fans would be ecstatic. One of the things we will miss about Sneed leaving — if he does, and things are leaning that way — is the double shot of Sneed and McDuffie taking the oppositions best WRs away. So, if Rakestraw is coachable we could have another dynamic duo.
DraftBuzz says his Weaknesses include:
.
.
As mentioned previously, listing the weaknesses is important so we can determine if most of these can be coached out. In the case of his slower Combine time, probably not. Same with the last one. If he has limited ball skills to take in INTs, that may be problematic.
.
Cooper DeJean, Iowa
Cooper DeJean is listed by CBS Sports as their 6th best CB but is the best by DraftBuz.com.
.
.
DeJean is 6-foot-0 and goes 203 lbs. while running a 4.5 40 yards dash. Here are DeJean’s Weaknesses as outlined by DraftBuzz.com:
.
.
Most of these can be coached out, so I’m not very concerned about these so-called weaknesses.
.
Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama
I usually don’t prefer Alabama players because they often think they’ve already arrived and consequently, can’t be coached up very much. Well, that may be somewhat true here but McKinstry is a good one and if he can be “trained” he could be as good as Sneed… eventually. McKinstry was discovered to have what’s called a “Jones fracture” in his right foot while going through the medical routine at the Combine.
.
.
McKinstry will make a full recovery before Training Camp:
.
.
McKinstry is 6-foot-0 tall and weighs in at 199 lbs.. He runs a 4.5 40 yard dash (unless he proves otherwise) and his Weaknesses listed by DraftBuzz.com include:
.
.
Even if L’Jarius Sneed leaves in a trade, I see K.C. taking a WR or a DT before they focus on taking a CB. What do you think? Should K.C. focus on an Offensive Tackle? Maybe that’s the solution, but if Sneed does get traded, it should mean K.C will have an extra pick in the second round — at least. Maybe even a first if all goes well. What do you think?
.
Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
.