The Official Royals Weekly Chiefs NFL Mock Draft
Yes, this is a Royals Substack, but who doesn't love a good mock draft?!
Thursday night kicks off the NFL Draft from Detroit, Michigan and the Royals Weekly crew is excited. As long time draft enthusiasts, we partake in all of the silliness that is mock drafts and online verbal disputes over prospects, trades, arm length, and 40 times. We love it. So here is the official 2024 Royals Weekly (Chiefs) 7-Round Mock Draft.
A look at the team
When you are two-time defending Super Bowl champs and have the best player in the world returning as your quarterback, you already have a good team. However, the Chiefs’s offense was mediocre for most of the regular season last year, and though they picked it up in the playoffs, the focus should mostly be on that side of the ball in this draft. Wide receiver and left tackle are widely seen as the biggest areas of need, but the team will need to look ahead for an interior offensive lineman and possibly a running back and/or tight end. Cornerback will also need to be addressed with the exit of L’Jarius Sneed and depth at interior defensive line is also needed.
Round 1 (Pick 32): Ladd McConkey - WR - Georgia
The biggest debate of the draft for the Chiefs is over whether they should take a receiver or tackle with their first-round pick. The class is great at receiver and good at tackle, but by the time the Chiefs pick, the day-one starters at tackle will likely be off the board. For me, pick 32 is too much for Tyler Guyton from Oklahoma or Kingsley Suamataia from BYU. Both are extremely athletic but still need A LOT of development. Instead, I’m going for McConkey who looks like he can be a volume receiver from the slot and also play a little at the Z position outside. He is one of the best route runners in the class and has underrated RAC ability. With Mahomes throwing him the ball, McConkey should be a 100-receptions guy by year three at the latest.
Round 2 (Pick 64): Kiran Amegadjie - LT - Yale
Amegadjie is certainly a developmental tackle. I mean, he played at Yale. This is probably a little bit of a reach, and if Patrick Paul is here at 64, I would take him instead, but I don’t think he will still be on the board. Amegadjie is a huge guy with long arms and quick feet. He has a long way to go with his footwork in pass protection and his hand placement in pass sets, but the athleticism and the physical tools are there. The Chiefs will have to sign a veteran (hello Donavan Smith) to a one-year deal while Amegadjie learns, but he might be the franchise left tackle the team has been looking for to protect Mahomes.
Round 3 (pick 95): Jermaine Burton - WR - Alabama
Burton is a really difficult prospect to place. The talent says late first round or early second, but there are questions about his character and coachability. He attended several different high schools including one where he enrolled, but never attended and went from Georgia to Alabama after winning a national title. There are reports that the coaching staff at both schools weren’t thrilled with Burton either. If you feel like he has the maturity to handle a wide receiver room that doesn’t have a lot of veteran leadership, then he provides a steal at the end of round 3. My belief in Burton is more a belief in Brett Veach to vet the character and Andy Reid to help him mature as a person once on the team.
Round 4 (pick 131): Elijah Jones - CB - Boston College
When L’Jarius Sneed left it created a tall, skinny, whole in the secondary that Jones could fill nicely. He is old for a prospect and there are certainly things to work on, but he is good in press-man coverage and he is willing to tackle. Those are prerequisites to get on the field as a Spags corner. He has good ball skills and the length to close throwing windows. The Chiefs will want to add a little bit of weight to him, as he has a slender frame, but I think he would have a chance to start on the outside from the first game, which means McDuffie can stay inside where he is a terror.
Round 5 (pick 159): Isaiah Adams - OG - Illinois
With the Chiefs losing Nick Allegreti in the offseason they will need another versatile interior linemen. Enter another former member of the Fighting Illini, Isaiah Adams. Adams is very different from Allegretti. Adams is a big and physical player with limited athleticism, but plenty of experience at guard and tackle. Physically he is more akin to Trey Smith. He may never be a guy that the Chiefs want to start consistently, but he should provide solid depth at both guard positions and even be able to fill in at tackle if needed.
Round 6 (pick 173): Fabien Lovett Sr. - DT - Florida State
There are actually quite a few Seminoles that I like on defense in this class. Lovett won’t be a pass rush threat, but he should help in the run game and he has the physical attributes Spags loves in a defensive lineman. He is tall and he has long arms. Lovett adds a good depth piece and a real help in the run game that at times (the first half of the Buffalo playoff game) was the only weakness on the defensive side.
Round 7 (pick 221): Rasheen Ali - RB - Tulane
Ali seems like a good fit for a Chiefs offense that needs some running back depth. He has good burst and should be able to run outside zone, a staple of the Andy Reid offense. He took a leave of absence in 2022 but returned to finish the season. He also sustained an injury at the Senior Bowl but should be back in time for the season. He has good burst and some ability to break tackles. He is good in the pass game as well. If he can develop as a pass protector, he seems like a good fit to replace Jerrick McKinnon as RB3.