The Kansas City Chiefs have entered uncharted waters this year, and that includes their draft position. According to a rundown in The Athletic, the Chiefs are now in the top ten of the 2026, specifically at #9, after yesterday’s action.
It’s a strange position for the Chiefs to be in, and as a result the rumors are flying. Most of them have the 6-10Chiefs drafting a replacement for tight end Travis Kelce, who’s been dodging questions about his retirement for a couple of weeks now.
There are still games to play, though, so there’s also the possibility that Kansas City’s draft position will change. As inconceivable as it may have seemed a couple of weeks ago, the Chiefs could actually lose their final game of the season on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders, given that third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun will once again be under center.
There are also two other teams with 6-10 records, the New Orleans Saints and Cincinnati Bengals. The Saints play the Atlanta Falcons, and they could easily win given the strong push they’ve been making behind rookie quarterback Tyler Shough.
Similarly, the Bengals could beat the Cleveland Browns the way quarterback Joe Burrow has been playing, which means the Chiefs could easily move up another slot.
Bu those rumors about drafting Kelce’s replacement with a top ten pick could easily be way off. The Chiefs have a lot of roster needs, especially along the line of scrimmage, so this could be a year they trade back to get even more drafts capital.
How will they use it? Across the board, most likely. The defensive line needs improvement, especially after the failure of defensive tackle Chris Jones to get home in the pass rush all season long. An athletic edge rusher will be on KC’s draft list, but not necessarily in the first round.
The Chiefs will also draft a running back, most likely in one of the later rounds. Accumulating more draft capital would also allow them to complete the trade they nearly made at the deadline for New York Jets running back Breece Hall, who would given Kansas City a level of play making they simply don’t have right now.
The offensive line will get more attention as well. The Chiefs made inroads there with rookie left tackle Josh Simmons, but more help is needed along the line. There’s going to be a lot more maneuvering happening, especially how badly the Chiefs want to avoid being in this position again.