Cowboys CB Kaiir Elam
Getty
Cowboys CB Kaiir Elam
The Kansas City Chiefs have a host of roster needs, and the franchise’s most recent move in free agency may drastically change how it approaches the first couple rounds of the NFL draft.
Kansas City holds pick Nos. 9, 29 and 40 in the first two rounds, which positions the team incredibly well to add big-time rookie talent at premium positions on inexpensive contracts. The question is where will the Chiefs focus their assets?
The team added an explosive running back in Kenneth Walker III and a run-stuffing defensive tackle in Khyiris Tonga last month, but must still improve at edge-rusher, offensive tackle, wide receiver and in the secondary. There is a chance that Kansas City might get first crack at cornerback in this year’s class, which would put Mansoor Delane in their sites.
However, the Chiefs inked former Buffalo Bills first-round CB and 2025 Dallas Cowboys starter Kaiir Elam in free agency on Thursday.
“The #Chiefs have agreed to terms with former #Bills and #Cowboys CB Kaiir Elam, his agent Jon Perzley of @SPORTSTARSNYC tells @RapSheet and me,” Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported on X April 2. “Former first-round pick heads to Kansas City, which lost both of its starting corners this offseason.”
The acquisition of Elam, who will play his fifth professional season in 2026 at the age of 25, could impact how Kansas City views its most pressing needs come draft night on April 23.
Chiefs May Still Draft CB Like Mansoor Delane With Top-10 Pick After Signing Kaiir Elam
GettyLSU cornerback Mansoor Delane.
If Delane remains available with the 9th pick, the Chiefs may still green light him as their first selection, even after inking Elam. Kansas City lost both of its starting cornerbacks from last year to the Los Angeles Rams this offseason, All-Pro Trent McDuffie via a trade and Jaylen Watson in free agency.
Elam remains young and has good experience, with 43 games played and 19 starts on his resumé, but he fell well short of living up to his draft position (No. 23 overall to Buffalo in 2022), which led the Bills to trade him to Dallas and the Cowboys to waive him in November before he caught on with the Tennessee Titans for last season’s stretch run.
All of that is to say that if lauded Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo can’t develop Elam’s talent the way he has done several times in the past with players like Watson, a former seventh-round pick in 2022 who just got $51 million over three years from the Rams, then Elam probably isn’t a longterm fixture of Kansas City’s secondary.
Chiefs Even More Likely to Draft Edge-Rusher First Following Kaiir Elam Addition
Miami's Rueben Bain Jr dominating NFL draft predictions for Chiefs
GettyPass-rusher Rueben Bain Jr. of the Miami Hurricanes.
That said, if Kansas City likes its potential to get more out of Elam on a value contract than three other teams did paying him on a higher-end rookie deal, the team could push its cornerback need off into the early second round where plenty of quality talent should still remain.
The positional upside of the CB class gets murkier after Delane, and if he is off the board and Kansas City waits until Round 2 to draft a DB, the team could end up with the second-best cornerback in 2026 at the No. 40 pick via taking a player like Colton Hood out of Tennessee.
There is a clearer cutoff line between tiers of talent at the position of pass-rusher, for instance, where David Bailey, Arvell Reese and Rueben Bain Jr. are the top three prospects running away, with a significant gap between whomever goes third from that group and the fourth edge defender that comes off the board.
If any of the three are there for Kansas City, the Chiefs probably can’t pass up the contractual value of drafting a potentially franchise player at a premier position, which prove true even if Delane remains still on the board.
In other words, if it is Bain against Delane at No. 9, the facts on the ground and Elam’s presence on the roster probably combine to push the Chiefs toward the pass-rusher.
Some mocks have also predicted that Kansas City will look to add an offensive weapon for quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the top 10 via a wide receiver like Jordyn Tyson or tight end Kenyon Sadiq.