TC's Valentines Day Mock Draft 2.0

[texaschief]

Release Tyson Jackson
Let Dorsey Walk
Let Albert Walk
Re-sign Bowe
Re-sign Pitoitua
Re-sign Colquitt

Free Agent Signings:

WR- Gregg Jennings
TE- Jared Cook
OG- Andy Levitre
LB- Phillip Wheeler

Trades:

Trade 2nd round pick to Minnesota who target the best QB available for picks 52 and 83 (3rd rd).

Trade pick 52 to the Eagles for QB Nick Foles.


Draft:

1st Round
LT Luke Joekel Texas A&M
The Chiefs replace Branden Albert with a less expensive upgrade in Luke Joekel. They get better value with this pick than if they had decided to take a QB #1 overall. Joekel fits into a line that boasts Jon Asamoah, Rodney Hudson, Andy Levitre, and Eric Winston with depth provided by in Stephenson and Allen.

3rd Round
3a.
LB Khaseem Greene Rutgers
He's a play-making, game changing LB who was also the back-to-back Big East defensive Player of the year. Greene had arguably the best junior and senior seasons of ANY Big East player. It's unknown as to which flavor of the 3-4 defense we'll be running, but it's a pretty good bet that we'll need LB help no matter what. One Derrick Johnson, one of the great values Greene offers is his versatility and ability to be extremely useful in ANY type of defensive scheme.

3rd Round
3b. (from Vikings)
RB Marcus Lattimore South Carolina
The Chiefs have decent depth behind Charles and this pick is probably superfluous, but c'mon... the best running back in this class is still on the board in the 4th round. There's very little downside to this selection. Yes, he's a risk having had 2 knee surgeries in the past 2 seasons. Gotta couple names for you though: Willis McGahee and Frank Gore. Both of those guys were in the same boat and have had pretty successful NFL careers. I wouldn't consider this player too much of an injury risk considering the circumstances that occurred to cause his injury. Lattimore is 6'0, 232 lbs and could essentially give the Chiefs a Jamaal Charles/Adrian Peterson 1-2 punch for the foreseeable future. Talk about a change of pace back. Can you imagine taking a beating from Lattimore for 6 to 8 plays and then chasing Charles 40 yards and then getting hit in the mouth from Lattimore the next play? ...wow.

3c. (compensation for Carr)
S Bacarri Rambo Georgia
The Chiefs need some stability next to Eric Berry. Rambo is a ball-hawking FS that would fit perfectly next to Berry... and let's be honest... that's a badass football name.

4th Round
QB Tyler Bray Tennessee
Tyler Bray is arguably the most talented QB in the 2013 crop. He's foregoing his senior year at Tennessee where he would probably be better served in his development. Bray is a great draft-and-develop prospect who would probably benefit greatly from sitting for a couple seasons to learn Andy Reid's system. The only problem I see with this pick is that Bray is as close to a statue in the pocket as there could possibly be and there haven't been too many of those drafted by Reid. But this is MY mock and I think Bray could be a good pick for the Chiefs if they can protect him.

5th
DB Tyrann Mathieu LSU (Sat out a year)
Off the field issues should not scare anyone away from top 5 talent in the 5th round. We need another play-maker in the secondary and you couldn't ask for a better one than the "Honey Badger" in the 5th round. (**may be worth a higher pick as we get closer to the draft)

6th Round
WR Marquise Goodwin Texas
Olympic athlete with elite speed and play-making ability. Sounds like a good WR option to throw in the mix at WR, KR, and PR.

7th Round
WR Uzoma Nwachukwu TX A&M
Good WR this late in the draft is never bad. You should always be on the lookout for playmakers in the last couple rounds of the draft. Nwachukwu and Goodwin present good upside for late round draft picks and if nothing else should endear themselves to the special teams coaches.



Assuming the players are available, I really like the first 6 picks. The Chiefs will have a gluttony of WRs if they re-sign Dwayne Bowe, so I could be persuaded to take other players in the 6th and 7th rounds. Finding play-makers should be the priority and not necessarily trying to find players to plug holes that late. I think you're looking at 5 starter coming out of this group if you include Foles. Lattimore will have the luxury of sitting as long as he needs to heal because of Jamaal Charles. Bray has arguably the most upside of any QB in this draft. Letting him sit and develop would be great for him. There's a little risk here, but when you look at Joekel, Lattimore (injury), Mathieu (immaturity), and Bray, there were absolutely scenarios that could've played out over this past season that could've seen each of these guys taken in the top 10 overall in this draft class. Talent is talent is talent and when we could take the next Adrian Peterson in the 3rd or a shut down, ball-hawking, play-making DB in the 5th, you spring at the chance... risk be damned! We're not talking about 3000 point gambles here like Geno Smith #1 overall. These picks cost less that 300 points... you can afford to take risks with these picks.

[Coach]

Release Tyson Jackson
Let Dorsey Walk
Let Albert Walk
Re-sign Bowe
Re-sign Pitoitua
Re-sign Colquitt

Free Agent Signings:

WR- Gregg Jennings
TE- Jared Cook
OG- Andy Levitre
LB- Phillip Wheeler

Trades:

Trade 2nd round pick to Minnesota who target the best QB available for picks 52 and 83 (3rd rd).

Trade pick 52 to the Eagles for QB Nick Foles.


Draft:

1st Round
LT Luke Joekel Texas A&M
The Chiefs replace Branden Albert with a less expensive upgrade in Luke Joekel. They get better value with this pick than if they had decided to take a QB #1 overall. Joekel fits into a line that boasts Jon Asamoah, Rodney Hudson, Andy Levitre, and Eric Winston with depth provided by in Stephenson and Allen.

3rd Round
3a.
LB Khaseem Greene Rutgers
He's a play-making, game changing LB who was also the back-to-back Big East defensive Player of the year. Greene had arguably the best junior and senior seasons of ANY Big East player. It's unknown as to which flavor of the 3-4 defense we'll be running, but it's a pretty good bet that we'll need LB help no matter what. One Derrick Johnson, one of the great values Greene offers is his versatility and ability to be extremely useful in ANY type of defensive scheme.

3rd Round
3b. (from Vikings)
RB Marcus Lattimore South Carolina
The Chiefs have decent depth behind Charles and this pick is probably superfluous, but c'mon... the best running back in this class is still on the board in the 4th round. There's very little downside to this selection. Yes, he's a risk having had 2 knee surgeries in the past 2 seasons. Gotta couple names for you though: Willis McGahee and Frank Gore. Both of those guys were in the same boat and have had pretty successful NFL careers. I wouldn't consider this player too much of an injury risk considering the circumstances that occurred to cause his injury. Lattimore is 6'0, 232 lbs and could essentially give the Chiefs a Jamaal Charles/Adrian Peterson 1-2 punch for the foreseeable future. Talk about a change of pace back. Can you imagine taking a beating from Lattimore for 6 to 8 plays and then chasing Charles 40 yards and then getting hit in the mouth from Lattimore the next play? ...wow.

3c. (compensation for Carr)
S Bacarri Rambo Georgia
The Chiefs need some stability next to Eric Berry. Rambo is a ball-hawking FS that would fit perfectly next to Berry... and let's be honest... that's a badass football name.

4th Round
QB Tyler Bray Tennessee
Tyler Bray is arguably the most talented QB in the 2013 crop. He's foregoing his senior year at Tennessee where he would probably be better served in his development. Bray is a great draft-and-develop prospect who would probably benefit greatly from sitting for a couple seasons to learn Andy Reid's system. The only problem I see with this pick is that Bray is as close to a statue in the pocket as there could possibly be and there haven't been too many of those drafted by Reid. But this is MY mock and I think Bray could be a good pick for the Chiefs if they can protect him.

5th
DB Tyrann Mathieu LSU (Sat out a year)
Off the field issues should not scare anyone away from top 5 talent in the 5th round. We need another play-maker in the secondary and you couldn't ask for a better one than the "Honey Badger" in the 5th round. (**may be worth a higher pick as we get closer to the draft)

6th Round
WR Marquise Goodwin Texas
Olympic athlete with elite speed and play-making ability. Sounds like a good WR option to throw in the mix at WR, KR, and PR.

7th Round
WR Uzoma Nwachukwu TX A&M
Good WR this late in the draft is never bad. You should always be on the lookout for playmakers in the last couple rounds of the draft. Nwachukwu and Goodwin present good upside for late round draft picks and if nothing else should endear themselves to the special teams coaches.



Assuming the players are available, I really like the first 6 picks. The Chiefs will have a gluttony of WRs if they re-sign Dwayne Bowe, so I could be persuaded to take other players in the 6th and 7th rounds. Finding play-makers should be the priority and not necessarily trying to find players to plug holes that late. I think you're looking at 5 starter coming out of this group if you include Foles. Lattimore will have the luxury of sitting as long as he needs to heal because of Jamaal Charles. Bray has arguably the most upside of any QB in this draft. Letting him sit and develop would be great for him. There's a little risk here, but when you look at Joekel, Lattimore (injury), Mathieu (immaturity), and Bray, there were absolutely scenarios that could've played out over this past season that could've seen each of these guys taken in the top 10 overall in this draft class. Talent is talent is talent and when we could take the next Adrian Peterson in the 3rd or a shut down, ball-hawking, play-making DB in the 5th, you spring at the chance... risk be damned! We're not talking about 3000 point gambles here like Geno Smith #1 overall. These picks cost less that 300 points... you can afford to take risks with these picks.

Parts of this draft I like, others not so much.

I understand the logic of getting a LT that can play for a smaller cap number and has less miles. But to me it's a wasted pick. We have a fairly young LT on this roster already who is proven. There is no sure thing at LT, I'd be happy to list some busts if need be. As far as getting him at a cheaper price, this team doesn't have cap problems. They are perennial cheapskates and are consistently one of the teams with the most cap space every offseason. To me you are choosing between Matt Cassel and Joekel or the best QB available plus Branden Albert. I will take the latter. I understand we could sign or trade a QB other than Cassel to play with Joekel. But we could do the same thing and have them play with Albert. Use the #1 draft pick to upgrade your team. Joekel is not a meaningful improvement, if any at all over Albert in other way other than money. You franchise tag Albert and make him prove he's healthy. If he is healthy, then sign him to a contract during the season.

Im also not a huge fan of giving up our 2nd rd pick for Nick Foles. I'd rather take a flyer on the 2nd or 3rd best QB available in this draft that will still be sitting there when we make our 2nd selection. Or packaging our 2nd and compensatory to move back up into the late 1st to grab the best QB available. Foles is not worth a 2nd rd pick in my opinion. Nothing more than a 3rd and would think you could get him for a swap of 3rd's and a 4th rd pick.

I like your other thoughts at safety and lb. I like Jared Cook but I thought we had Boss back for another year. I could be wrong though.

I just have a very hard time understanding how using a once in a couple of decade pick(#1 overall) to upgrade a position of strength helps our team more than addressing the biggest weakness on this team. Joekel with not be a better LT next year than Branden Albert IMO. Lets take a shot at a QB big he doesn't work out, then you take another shot at one next year. And you repeat that process until you have found your qbotf. Then you build around him.

Hopefully you realize that letting a good LT walk(Albert), just to spend 3000 draft points on a new LT is the equivalent of drafting a bust QB with the #1 pick. At least if we draft the best QB in the draft there is a chance he won't be a bust. Or at the very least draft a position of need. Sign Bowe, tag Albert and due your homework on the QB's.

[#58ChiefsFan]

Boss got a three year deal for 9 million through 2014, O'Connell and Maneri both had their contracts end this year according to spotrac.

[Coach]

Boss got a three year deal for 9 million through 2014, O'Connell and Maneri both had their contracts end this year according to spotrac.

Boss and Moeaki are good combination when healthy. Jared Cook is probably a better receiving TE than both, but would be a luxury pickup versus some of the more glaring holes this team has in my opinion. If you look at Andy Reid offenses from the past, TE isn't exactly a marquis position anyway. Check out this underwelming list of past Eagles' tight ends.
http://www.fantasyfootballchallenge....ight-ends.html

[#58ChiefsFan]

Boss and Moeaki are good combination when healthy. Jared Cook is probably a better receiving TE than both, but would be a luxury pickup versus some of the more glaring holes this team has in my opinion. If you look at Andy Reid offenses from the past, TE isn't exactly a marquis position anyway. Check out this underwelming list of past Eagles' tight ends.
http://www.fantasyfootballchallenge....ight-ends.html

At this point Moeaki has been kind of disappointing to me, there's a lot of factors with the previous regime and the ACL so I'd keep him on the roster and hope he can prove me wrong but I see us with only one TE in Boss right now.

Take a read of this article I came across yesterday

@Jacobs71: Here's @HerbieTeope article on TEs in Andy Reid's system. Must Read http://t.co/YQ2kzsZp

[texaschief]

Parts of this draft I like, others not so much.

I understand the logic of getting a LT that can play for a smaller cap number and has less miles. But to me it's a wasted pick. We have a fairly young LT on this roster already who is proven. There is no sure thing at LT, I'd be happy to list some busts if need be. As far as getting him at a cheaper price, this team doesn't have cap problems. They are perennial cheapskates and are consistently one of the teams with the most cap space every offseason. To me you are choosing between Matt Cassel and Joekel or the best QB available plus Branden Albert. I will take the latter. I understand we could sign or trade a QB other than Cassel to play with Joekel. But we could do the same thing and have them play with Albert. Use the #1 draft pick to upgrade your team. Joekel is not a meaningful improvement, if any at all over Albert in other way other than money. You franchise tag Albert and make him prove he's healthy. If he is healthy, then sign him to a contract during the season.

This team doesn't have the cap space we all thought they had. Getting Albert, Jackson, and Cassel off the payroll will give the team a lot more flexibility. I know it doesn't make a ton of sense, but I posted an article about a month ago explaining the Chiefs cap situation and it's not all ponies and rainbows. Because there is no clear-cut, can't miss player in this draft, it's going to be almost impossible to trade out of that #1 pick considering the cost for a team to move up. There CERTAINLY isn't a QB worth taking #1 overall considering the best QB is ranked in the high teens in relation to his draft class. That really only leaves one logical move at #1 overall... which is to pay less for a better player at a cornerstone position. Albert will cost a lot of money to keep in the fold and suddenly began developing back issues. (Kyle Turley anyone?) That leaves the franchise tag open for Bowe to keep in a pass heavy offense if it's absolutely needed. Like I've said before, even if a LT busts, he's still a serviceable player somewhere on the OL. If a QB busts, he becomes a laughing stock and just another example why you don't waste the #1 pick on anything less than a Manning or Andrew Luck type franchise QB. If these QBs are not at that elite level, they're not worth the #1 pick. I'm pretty sure we can all agree that an elite QB is not in this draft class.

Im also not a huge fan of giving up our 2nd rd pick for Nick Foles. I'd rather take a flyer on the 2nd or 3rd best QB available in this draft that will still be sitting there when we make our 2nd selection. Or packaging our 2nd and compensatory to move back up into the late 1st to grab the best QB available. Foles is not worth a 2nd rd pick in my opinion. Nothing more than a 3rd and would think you could get him for a swap of 3rd's and a 4th rd pick.

Nick Foles has everything we could possibly want in a franchise QB. He's proven to be successful in Andy Reid's offense and is ABSOLUTELY better than any QB coming out in this draft... ESPECIALLY one that would be available in the 2nd or 3rd round.

I like your other thoughts at safety and lb. I like Jared Cook but I thought we had Boss back for another year. I could be wrong though.

I just have a very hard time understanding how using a once in a couple of decade pick(#1 overall) to upgrade a position of strength helps our team more than addressing the biggest weakness on this team. Joekel with not be a better LT next year than Branden Albert IMO. Lets take a shot at a QB big he doesn't work out, then you take another shot at one next year. And you repeat that process until you have found your qbotf. Then you build around him.

This is the absolute worst approach you could implement. Ask the Raiders how 11 QBs over 6 years has worked out for them. You're not going to draft a QB #1 overall just to see if he'll work out after 1 season. A QB #1 overall requires at LEAST 4 to 5 seasons to see if he can handle the position. Investing in a QB isn't just a 1 year venture. You don't invest that heavily in a one year roll of the dice. That approach isn't what Clark Hunt wants to see from his staff and it shouldn't be what we as fans want to see from this staff. We should want them to evaluate this draft class and maximize their return on investment... not gamble an entire draft's value on a player who isn't ranked any higher than 15 overall just because he fills a need. I really am sorry, but that is such a bad approach.

Hopefully you realize that letting a good LT walk(Albert), just to spend 3000 draft points on a new LT is the equivalent of drafting a bust QB with the #1 pick. At least if we draft the best QB in the draft there is a chance he won't be a bust. Or at the very least draft a position of need. Sign Bowe, tag Albert and due your homework on the QB's.

No, it's not. Albert missed 4 games with a back injury. Those don't get better with time for LTs. A "bust" LT can still play any other position on the OL, just ask Robert Gallery. Spending big money on Albert and then drafting the best QB #1 overall is doubling your risk. There are FAR fewer LT busts than QB busts anyway... so that reduces risk as well. I would rather trade #1 overall for Nick Foles than draft ANY of the QBs in this draft class for the same reason why you don't want to let Albert walk... he's proven to be successful. The problem I have with Albert is that he'd cost twice what Joekel would cost and has recently developed injury concerns.

Cheap Joekel+proven Foles > expensive Albert+unproven #1QB

Why is this even a question? How many times are we talking about a busted LT as opposed to a busted QB? It ain't often. From '93 to '09, LT's taken in the top 16 have a 19.2% bust rate. QBs over that same time period have a 44.4% bust rate. Keep in mind, this is including "can't miss" QB's like Leaf, Carr, A. Smith, Russell, etc. There isn't even a QB in this class considered "can't miss." The hit rate for LTs is 70% compared to just under 50% for QBs. As much as I'd LOVE to see a QB worth taking #1 overall, that guy just IS NOT THERE in 2013. It's just bad luck by this franchise... again. Knee jerk drafting is not the way to improve this franchise.

For the record, I'm am also adamantly against DL's with the #1 overall pick.

The link for the above mentioned stats is here: http://walterfootball.com/nfldraftoffensivetackles.php

Y'all, we can't lose our sh!t just because our QB's suck and we have the #1 pick. A franchise QB would've been the easy pick. If that player does not exist in this draft, that's when we have to be smart and figure out the best way to help this team. Only the Colts get championship caliber QBs handed to them on silver platters whenever they need them. The rest of the franchises need to work for them.




Ask yourself this question: If the Chiefs had somehow won 2 more games and found themselves in the #4 spot instead of #1, would you be willing to trade your ENTIRE draft AND next year's 3rd rounder to draft a QB #1 overall? If you can't say yes to this question, then you don't understand the value of the pick the Chiefs have at #1 overall.


In my opinion, Nick Foles represents the highest upside of all the QBs the Chiefs could reasonably acquire this offseason.

[AussieChiefsFan]

Still don't see why people want/think a LT at #1 would be a smart choice. Although, I guess it did work out for the Browns and Dolphins.

[texaschief]

Still don't see why people want/think a LT at #1 would be a smart choice. Although, I guess it did work out for the Browns and Dolphins.

That's cute... and relevant. Ever bother to look at how many QB's the Browns have taken in the first round over the course of their franchise history? They'd take Joe Thomas over every single one of them every day of the week. If you don't understand how a LT is better than a QB in this draft, then you haven't been reading.

It's not just about drafting QB's in the first round... it's about drafting the RIGHT QB in the first round. Go ask the Browns their thoughts on THAT topic.

[AussieChiefsFan]

That's cute... and relevant. Ever bother to look at how many QB's the Browns have taken in the first round over the course of their franchise history? They'd take Joe Thomas over every single one of them every day of the week. If you don't understand how a LT is better than a QB in this draft, then you haven't been reading.

It's not just about drafting QB's in the first round... it's about drafting the RIGHT QB in the first round. Go ask the Browns their thoughts on THAT topic.

That's very true. But the general idea seems to be that there is no Luck or RG3 in this draft. Last year was a once in a decade QB class. This class very bad at all, obviously not up to the standard of last years, but absolutely not a bad class. My point is that even thought they have all-pro Left Tackles, they are still at the bottom of the league. Yes the browns have swung many times and missed almost every time, but if you dont swing at all, there's no chance you'll hit. The chiefs haven't drafted a QB in the first round in 30 years. That's an awfully long time to not even try.

[AussieChiefsFan]

Also we already have a Left-tackle in Brandon Albert. There'd be no sense in moving him, letting him walk etc. He has said he wants to stay in Kansas City, and Andy Reid has a history of (re)signing players on the O-line. But say he DOES walk..... By drafting Joekel we aren't even guerenteed we are getting a player as good as Albert. Then we have a rookie LT and still have no QB for him to protect. Don't get me wrong, Im not saying he's not going to be a good player in the NFL, but there's no point having a good protector if there's nobody to protect.

And why NOT draft Geno Smith at #1? We need a quarterback, he's the best one coming out of college.