The Kansas City Chiefs found out in the 2025 NFL season that their roster was ill-equipped for another run at the Super Bowl. Last year, they took some steps backward on offense, but an elite defensive performance and the individual greatness of Patrick Mahomes in the clutch led them to a 15-2 record and a chance to repeat as champions anyway.
In 2025, the defense could no longer cover for the Chiefs’ shortcomings on the other side of the ball, leading KC to be eliminated from playoff contention just 15 weeks into the campaign. It was painfully obvious that this team had holes all over the roster. Now, it’s up to General Manager Brett Veach to figure out how to fill those needs with virtually zero cap space to work with in free agency.
Mock draft has Chiefs taking a luxury pick in the first round
The 2026 NFL Draft will be critical for the Kansas City Chiefs’ chances of bouncing back after their miserable 2025 NFL season and starting the second leg of their dynasty. General Manager Brett Veach will have six picks in the first five rounds at his disposal. He’ll have to hit on almost all of them to ensure that his Chiefs can continue to compete for Super Bowls for the foreseeable future.
The bright side of their abysmal 6-11 finish this past season is that the Chiefs will have favorable picks to work with in the draft, including the ninth-overall selection. There are several needs that Veach could address there, including premium positions like offensive line or EDGE. CBS Sports’ Josh Edwards has KC going in a different direction, though, adding to a spot where the team actually has some strong depth with Clemson DT Peter Woods:
#Clemson DT Peter Woods (6’3, 310) has dominated at every single level he has played, from high school, and throughout college even as a freshman. Expect the same in the NFL.
👍
– 20
– 4.86 40
– EXTREMELY explosive
– Very fluid as an athlete
– Violent heavy hands
– Great at… pic.twitter.com/FkXQXIm0dU— mrlutz (@mr1lutz) January 15, 2026
“Kansas City appears to be a team in transition. It needs an infusion of young impact players on both sides of the ball as it works to return to glory. Peter Woods was overrated early in the draft process but is now undervalued. In theory, Woods is the heir apparent to Chris Jones, and the hope is Omarr Norman-Lott can still develop into a complementary piece.”
Speaking of Norman-Lott, it’d be especially alarming to see the Chiefs pick a defensive tackle with their ninth-overall selection, considering they just spent their second-rounder in 2025 on ONL. Kansas City will eventually need a replacement for Chris Jones, but with all of their other needs on the roster, this might not be the most efficient usage of a premium asset.
