The Kansas City Chiefs currently hold the No. 9 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft — their highest selection since 2013, when they took left tackle Eric Fisher first overall.
They’ll make that selection (or trade up, or trade back) on Thursday night, April 23. Between now and then, team executives will attend the NFL Scouting Combine, restructure contracts, part with some of their own players and sign new ones.
Where the Chiefs go with their first-round pick will be influenced by their moves over the next two months. That’s the part we don’t know. But right now, we can take a look back for a sense of the quality that could be on the board when they’re up at No. 9.
To get a feel for it, let’s look at the last five No. 9 overall picks.
2021: The Denver Broncos select cornerback Patrick Surtain II.
No. 8 overall: Carolina selects CB Jaycee Horn | No. 10 overall: Philadelphia selects WR DeVonta Smith.
When the Broncos went with Surtain back in 2021, the messaging was that he was drafted to counteract two in-division tight end nightmares: the Chiefs’ Travis Kelce and Raiders’ Darren Waller.
Looking back, Surtain at No. 9 should be viewed as a slam-dunk. He won 2024’s AP Defensive Player of the Year Award, has been named an All-Pro three times and was a Pro Bowler on four occasions.
Smith at No. 10 would have been a fine pick, too — and defensive end Micah Parsons (No. 12) and left tackle Rashawn Slater (No. 13) were taken shortly after.
The Chiefs traded their first-round pick at No. 31 as part of a trade for left tackle Orlando Brown Jr.
2022: The Seattle Seahawks select tackle Charles Cross.
No. 8 overall: Atlanta selects WR Drake London | No. 10 overall: New York Jets select WR Garrett Wilson.
This article is timely for Cross, who is fresh off a Super Bowl championship victory with the Seahawks.
Since Seattle took him in 2022, he has made 66 starts (including playoffs) at left tackle. Ahead of this year’s postseason, the Seahawks rewarded him with a four-year extension worth $104.4 million.
The receivers who sandwiched Cross — London and Wilson — would have been welcome additions in Kansas City. All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton went to the Baltimore Ravens at No. 14.
The Chiefs picked twice in the first round, trading up to take cornerback Trent McDuffie at No. 21 and later picking defensive end George Karlaftis at No. 30.
2023: The Philadelphia Eagles select defensive tackle Jalen Carter.
No. 8 overall: Atlanta selects RB Bijan Robinson | No. 10 overall: Chicago selects T Darnell Wright.
Kansas City unfortunately knows Carter well from Philadelphia’s domination up front in Super Bowl LIX. While Carter didn’t make the box score, KC chose to double-team him frequently, opening up the door for his linemates to register multiple sacks.
Carter was a second-team All-Pro in 2024, and his attention in the trenches can be compared to a young Chris Jones.
There is a running back in this year’s draft who has drawn analysts’ comparisons to Robinson, who was taken at No. 8 in 2023: Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love. Some have expected the Chiefs to go in that direction. There were outstanding players littered throughout 2023’s first round, including Jahmyr Gibbs (No. 12), Christian Gonzalez (No. 17) and Jaxon Smith-Njigba (No. 20).
The Chiefs used their 31st-overall pick to take defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah.
2024: The Chicago Bears select wide receiver Rome Odunze.
No. 8 overall: Atlanta selects QB Michael Penix Jr. | No. 10 overall: Minnesota selects QB JJ McCarthy.
Through two seasons, Odunze appears to be a player on the rise, recording 98 catches, 1,395 yards and nine touchdowns. Six of those touchdowns came in 2025 despite the fact that he limited to 12 games due to a stress fracture in his foot.
During a first round in which the Chiefs later took a wide receiver, they might have considered Odunze if they were high enough in the pecking order. The returns on Penix and McCarthy remain to be seen. Both came with early hype but are now facing adversity. The Raiders selected Brook Bowers at No. 13 and the Rams took AP Defensive Rookie of the Year Jared Verse at No. 19.
The Chiefs traded up to No. 28 to take wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
2025: The New Orleans Saints select tackle Kelvin Banks Jr.
No. 8 overall: Carolina selects WR Tetairoa McMillan | No. 10 overall: Chicago selects TE Colston Loveland.
Banks proved to be a plug-and-play left tackle for the Saints, as he started 17 games as a rookie.
The Chiefs went into the draft with a desperate need for a left tackle, so it’s possible Banks — or Josh Conerly Jr., who went to Washington at No. 29 — might have been their pick, had they been in the top 10 like they are this year.
As a rookie, McMillan caught 70 passes for over 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns, leading to an AP Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Loveland and the Colts’ Tyler Warren (No. 14) look like they will be future stars at the tight end position.
The Chiefs traded back one spot to No. 32, which they used to take tackle Josh Simmons.