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Wide receiver it is for the Kansas City Chiefs!
ESPN's Mel Kiper and Todd McShay both revealed new 2014 NFL mock drafts today and both have the KC Chiefs going after a receiver -- except not the same one. Kiper has the Chiefs selecting Florida State WR Kelvin Benjaminwhile McShay has them taking LSU WR Odell Beckham Jr.
Kiper did a conference call this morning, talking about the Chiefs and others.
Kiper: KC could go WR, safety, tight end. If you look at the WR pos, you could see 6-9 in the 1st round. Underclassmen need to test well.
— Dan Kadar (@MockingTheDraft) February 6, 2014
Kiper mentions Benjamin, Beckham, Adams, Cooks, Landry as guys that would be "viable" for Kansas City.
— Dan Kadar (@MockingTheDraft) February 6, 2014
Kiper thinks the first round would be a nice opportunity for the Chiefs to draft a WR because of the quality of the position.
— Dan Kadar (@MockingTheDraft) February 6, 2014
It's so ridiculously early in the NFL Draft season that I wouldn't pay all that much attention to specific players here. The way I look at these mock drafts, at least this early in the season, is to focus on the position the mock drafters are targeting.
For the Chiefs, wide receiver makes plenty of sense given the need to improve on a passing game that got much better as the season went on. Dwayne Bowe is really the only sure thing at receiver right now. Donnie Avery has two more years left on his contract though some wonder if he'll be back. Dexter McCluster is a free agent, so is Kyle Williams. The Chiefs like AJ Jenkins. The others are no guarantee to make the roster. So there's a lot of movement going on here.
Andy Reid's offense is generally high-volume passing, which requires plenty of talent at receiver. He invested in receiver over his time in Philly with high draft picks such as Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson. It's not crazy to think the Chiefs are targeting a receiver, especially in a draft where receiver is said to be a deep position.
If you haven't yet, read Nick Jacobs' piece on which receivers the Chiefs could target in free agency. And here's a look at the top free agent receivers that could hit the market.
