Memphis DT Dontari Poe is the "it" pick right now for the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2012 NFL draft. Well, in reality, the "it" pick for the various mock drafts out there. I've said Poe makes some sense because the Chiefs obviously have a need at nose tackle but you also gotta acknowledge that there are plenty of legit concerns and reasons the Chiefs won't select him.
But enough about Poe. Everyone's sending him to the Chiefs in mock drafts so I wanted to focus on one that picked someone other than Poe. As AP user ilamuku points out, Peter Schrager of FOXSports.com stays in the South for the Chiefs pick and it's not Poe.
Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama
The Chiefs upgraded at the right tackle position this weekend, grabbing Eric Winston off the scrap heap. The loss of Brandon Carr hurts, though, and I wouldn't be surprised if Scott Pioli reached and grabbed Kirkpatrick with the 11th pick.
A 6-0 DB with top-flight speed (think Patrick Peterson speed), Kirkpatrick is the rare tall cornerback who can keep up with the game's fastest receivers.
This would make some people mad, right? Because cornerback isn't one of the top needs?
I'd probably be a little annoyed if this were the pick, too. But that's not to say it would be a bad pick. Remember, Chiefs GM Scott Pioli has to make picks based on what the team will look like over the next five years. So that means you can't just look at the team and say, 'There's not a starting nose tackle on the team so we have to draft one.'
I'm working on a longer post about this but there are reasons why drafting an offensive tackle, defensive end or even a cornerback makes sense (even if many people wouldn't like it).