The Kansas City Chiefs had a disastrous 2025 campaign that saw the franchise miss the playoffs for the first time since 2014, and it needs to draft well to address roster holes for 2026 and beyond.
The Kansas City Chiefs saw its decade-long playoff streak come to an end in 2025 for various reasons.
All three phases of the Chiefs simply weren’t good enough. Offensively, even when star quarterback Patrick Mahomes was healthy, the passing game suffered due to injuries and drops. The running game couldn’t muster explosive runs, and it caused the passing game to become more obvious and easily defended. The offensive line was fine performance-wise, but right tackle Jawaan Taylor was the second-most penalized player in the National Football League.
Defensively, despite having an amazing defensive coordinator in Steve Spagnuolo who calls blitzes like no other, the Chiefs struggled to get home far more than it has in recent years. Its best player, defensive tackle Chris Jones, is aging and while he’s still great, he doesn’t have the same finish he once did at 32-years-old.
On special teams, kicker Harrison Butker had his worst statistical season, and the unit didn’t do a great job at finishing tackles. The unit could have been worse, but it could have been a lot better as well.
The Chiefs have a ton of draft picks to use in this year’s draft next week, including two first-rounders and four picks inside the first 75 selections. Kansas City doesn’t have to address the running back position after signing the reigning Super Bowl Most Valuable Player, Kenneth Walker III, but could use one of its mid-to-late-round picks on a big-bodied receiver with good hands to try to minimize drops. ESPN’s Ben Solak believes that would be an option that helps the Chiefs ace the draft, but he wants the team to focus on adding as many defensive players as possible.
The secondary is wide open after the departures of Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, and the defensive line desperately needs life in the form of an explosive pass-rusher. Solak thinks that the early rounds should be spent addressing the defensive line and while the middle rounds are handled by Spagnuolo as he has an extended track record of developing mid-round defensive backs, but Solak also notes that the need for good DBs is so apparent that selecting one in the early rounds could be necessary.
“Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has always identified and developed middle-rounds DBs wonderfully, but the need is so great that early picks might be required,” Solak wrote Thursday. “Avieon Terrell (Clemson) and Colton Hood (Tennessee) both bring the nonnegotiable tackling that Spagnuolo loves.”
Hood just had a visit with the Chiefs, so the seeds may have been planted for his selection. Depending on who is available at No. 9, edge-rusher seems like the best play using one of Kansas City’s first-rounders.
“The Chiefs need a speed rusher, and they could have their choice of Malachi Lawrence (UCF), R Mason Thomas (Oklahoma) or Cashius Howell (Texas A&M) at No. 29.”
There’s a lot to achieve during this draft for the Chiefs, but it’s obvious that defense is the way to go this year.