Now that we’ve met John Dorsey, the new general manager for your Kansas City Chiefs, and now that Andy Reid has hired the majority of his staff, it’s time to start speculating on the draft. The Chiefs are on the clock with the first pick and there’s debate over what they should do with it. Trade it for more picks? Take a quarterback? Take the best player available regardless of position? Dorsey ran the draft for Green Bay for more than a decade, and you can see how successful they’ve been. They drafted quarterback Aaron Rodgers when Brett Favre was in his prime simply because he was the best player available when it was their turn to pick. Many Packer’s fans criticized the pick but later praised it when Rodgers led the Packers to a Super Bowl victory. Here is a breakdown of four top players the Chiefs could take with their first pick. Who do you think they should take?
1) Geno Smith, West Virginia Quarterback
Pros: He’s a quarterback. Some believe the best available. He finished his senior year with the second highest completion percentage (71.2%) and threw more touchdowns than any other college quarterback with only six interceptions. He has a very strong arm and while he’s not a runner, he has the agility to move around in the pocket and scramble if the play breaks down.
Cons: He’s no Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III, the top two quarterbacks taken last year. Many believe Smith will be a good NFL quarterback but not a great one. Do you hand over the reigns of your struggling team to a quarterback who struggled to lead his team to a 7-6 record?
2) Jarvis Jones, Georgia Linebacker
Pros: When the junior linebacker declared for the draft, he shot to the top of most leader boards. He led the nation with 14.5 sacks and is considered the most explosive playmaker available. In defensive coordinator Bob Sutton’s 3-4 defense, Jones could pair up with Derrick Johnson, Justin Houston and Tamba Hali to form the most formidable linebacker corps in the NFL.
Cons: His health. Jones began his playing career at USC but a neck injury sidelined him. A doctor diagnosed it as spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinal column, and USC doctors recommended he retire from football. He transferred to Georgia and became an All-American linebacker. Is the risk of another neck injury worth it to add his talent and ability to the Chiefs defense?
3) Star Lotulelei, Utah Defensive Tackle
Pros: Considered by some as the best talent in the draft, Lotulelei could line up next to Dontari Poe and help fill the inside gaps, forcing opposing running backs to rush to the outside of the tackles, taking away opponent’s inside running game. In a draft deep with really good defensive tackles, Star is considered the “star” of the class.
Cons: A defensive lineman? Really? The Chiefs have had such a miserable history of failure when it comes to drafting defensive linemen in the first round. Ryan Sims. Junior Siavii. Eddie Freeman. Turk McBride. Tank Tyler. Alex Magee. Glenn Dorsey. Tyson Jackson. These guys never reached fans’ expectations for a first round pick. Would Star?
4) Luke Joekel, Texas A&M Offensive Tackle
Pros: Protected the blind side of NFL quarterback Ryan Tannehill and Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. Would help shore up the offensive line if the Chiefs fail to re-sign Brandon Albert. A safe pick.
Cons: Not a very sexy pick. Taking an offensive lineman first would not excite the fan base hungry for more playmakers.
It will be fun to speculate what the Chiefs will do in the coming weeks with free agency to fill some holes. As the Chiefs pick up more players, their needs will become more evident. But again, you have a general manager who says he picks players in the draft based on ability, not team need. There’s a lot of pressure to make the right pick, as this player will become the face of the new regime.
You can reach Matt Stewart at matt.stewart@wdaftv4.com
