The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions, but with everyone’s attention now turning to 2023, it’s time to do a mock draft. Even though the Chiefs won it all last year, there are still quite a few holes on the roster that need addressing.
Note that this mock draft is only three rounds because the NFL Draft itself is still months away. A lot can change between now and then, so it only makes sense to include players that are more known commodities. Also note that this exercise was performed using the Pro Football Network Mock Draft Machine. If the player was on the board when the Chiefs were on the clock, they were fair game.
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Kansas City Chiefs Mock Draft: The First Three Rounds
First Round (31st Overall): B.J. Ojulari, LSU
Despite winning the Super Bowl, the Chiefs have quite a lot of work to do on defense. B.J. Ojulari won’t singlehandedly fix the defense, but he will go a long way in improving the pass rush. While he is smaller than your average edge defender, he has an unmatched technique and multiple years of impressive production against elite college competition. He should immediately fit in as a speed rusher, but once he adds some muscle, he has the potential to be a borderline 10-sack guy for the next decade.
BJ Ojulari is getting after the QB today 🐅
Nice move to beat the RG for the sackpic.twitter.com/uxssD7qzQl
— RanDynasty (@ran_dynasty) September 18, 2022
Second Round (62nd Overall): Devon Achane, Texas A&M
Some might call this a reach, and if I were actually in charge of the Chiefs, I would have tried to trade back here. However, I’m not including trades in this Chiefs mock draft, which means that Texas A&M running back Devon Achane is the newest member of the team.
Isiah Pacheco played well down the stretch last year, but it’s highly unlikely the Chiefs trust him to be the unquestioned RB1. Achane doesn’t have the build to be a true three-down back, but his skillset makes him a perfect fit for Kansas City’s offense.
Achane is probably the fastest running back in the class, and he knows how to use that acceleration to blow past linebackers and routinely make big plays. While he lacks the size to break tackles, that won’t be an issue in Kansas City’s offense. The Chiefs face the fewest amount of stacked boxes in the league due to their dangerous aerial attack. Achane is the perfect player to take advantage of these light boxes and should produce chunk plays at a regular rate.
Third Round (95th Overall): Mazi Smith, Michigan
At 6′-3″ and 337 pounds, Mazi Smith is an absolute freak of nature in the middle of the defensive line. Blessed with elite size and strength, the Michigan product locks on to linemen and never lets them go. A traditional nose tackle, Smith eats up blockers, takes on double teams, and frees up others to make plays.
What’s truly scary about Smith is that he’s this good despite having poor mechanics. If coaches can teach him the nuances of the game, he could be an absolute steal at the back end of the third.
Main Photo: Jerome Miron – USA Today Sports
