April 28, 2016; Chicago; NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell opens the 2016 NFL Draft at Selection Square in Grant Park. (AP Photo/Matt Marton)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – With the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft in the books, Chiefs general manager John Dorsey shifts focus Friday night to the second round.
Dorsey has ammunition, of course, after trading out of the first round Thursday night to gain an extra second-round pick (37th overall) from the San Francisco 49ers to go along with Kansas City’s original 59th overall pick.
While the trade cost Dorsey a seventh-round pick, the Chiefs have two picks within the top 60 players of the 2016 draft class and three within the top 105 despite not having a third-round pick.
And Dorsey appeared content Thursday night where the Chiefs stand going forward.
“It gives you a shot at real players – that’s kind of what it does – it gives you options and shots at real players,” Dorsey said. “Again, you target the draft, you think it’s into the second, third and fourth round, so now you have accumulated more picks. So, let’s go work it now.”
Thursday night’s trade gave the Chiefs extra picks in the fourth round (105th overall) and sixth round (178th overall), meaning Kansas City has eight total picks in the form of two second-round picks, two fourth-round picks, two fifth-round picks and two sixth-round picks.
And with the stockpiled picks, Dorsey has a variety of directions to go on either side of the ball in the second round.
Should the Chiefs decide to address the guard position, Kansas State’s Cody Whitehair and Missouri’s Connor McGovern could prove difficult to ignore. Addressing guard would make sense for Dorsey when considering the offseason releases of Ben Grubbs and Paul Fanaika.
Defensive options on the board entering Friday night include Clemons cornerback Mackensie Alexander or UCLA linebacker Myles Jack, whom Dorsey mentioned specifically by name Thursday night as being surprised Jack was still on the board.
In the meantime, Dorsey, who tends to place players in tiers before the draft, could very well end up with a player he originally had ranked between 11 through 30 at pick No. 37.
Whether that scenario unfolds remains to be seen, but the Chiefs general manager is prepared to let the draft come to him.
“Time will tell,” Dorsey said. “Time will tell.”
THE LAST TIME
Dorsey is no stranger to trading out of the first round and the last time he was involved in such a transaction occurred while he served on the personnel staff of the Green Bay Packers in 2008.
Green Bay traded its first round-round pick (30th oveall) to the New York Jets in exchange for the Jets’ second-round pick (36th overall) and fourth-round pick (113th overall).
“The old club I traded back and got a pretty good player,” Dorsey said.
The player Dorsey alluded to comes with a local feel, as Green Bay used the second-round pick acquired from the Jets on former Kansas State wide receiver Jordy Nelson.
THE LAST TIME, TAKE II
Thursday night marked the first time since 2004 the Chiefs traded out of the first round.
In the 2004 NFL Draft, the Chiefs sent a first-round pick to the Detroit Lions in exchange for a second-round pick (36th overall), which the Chiefs used on defensive lineman Junior Siavii, and a fourth-round pick, which was used to select wide receiver Samie Parker.
Kansas City also gained Detroit’s fifth-round pick in 2005, which the Chiefs used to select cornerback Alphonso Hodge.
CHIEFS’ DRAFT PICKS
|
ROUND |
PICK |
OVERALL |
|
2 |
6 | 37* |
|
2 |
28 | 59 |
|
4 |
7 |
105* |
|
4 |
28 |
126 |
| 5 | 25 |
162** |
| 5 | 28 |
165 |
|
6 |
3 |
178* |
|
6 |
28 |
203 |
* Acquired via trade with the San Francisco 49ers
** Acquired via trade that sent safety Kelcie McCray to Seattle Seahawks in 2015
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Herbie Teope is the lead Chiefs beat writer for The Topeka Capital-Journal and ChiefsDigest.com. Use the contact page to reach him or find him on Twitter: @HerbieTeope.
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