Arrowheadlines: Chiefs talked to several defensive backs at Scouting Combine

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Chiefs meet with several defensive backs at NFL combine | The Kansas City Star

Cornerbacks who have confirmed formal interviews with the Chiefs include Louisville's Jaire Alexander, Tennessee's Rashaan Gaulden, Auburn's Carlton Davis, Louisiana State's Donte Jackson and Wisconsin's Nick Nelson.

Trey Walker of Louisiana-Lafayette, a safety, has also confirmed a formal interview with the Chiefs.

Chiefs have scheduled formal interviews with many at NFL Combine | The Kansas City Star

Linemen who have confirmed formal interviews with the Chiefs include: defensive end Jalyn Holmes of Ohio State, defensive end Duke Ejiofor of Wake Forest, defensive tackle Nathan Shepherd of Fort Hays State and defensive end Davin Bellamy of Georgia.

Chiefs are all-in with Patrick Mahomes in 2018 and beyond | ESPN

Mahomes will take over from Smith as the starter. He started and played one game last season, leading the Chiefs to a win over the Denver Broncos. Once Smith is traded, Mahomes will be the only quarterback under contract with the Chiefs. That means the Chiefs need a backup to work behind Mahomes. Chase Daniel would make some sense.

After yips ended his baseball career, Hayden Hurst emerges as Bears TE option | Chicago Sun-Times

New coach Matt Nagy’s offense demands a dynamic tight end. When Nagy was with the Chiefs, -Travis Kelce led the position in receiving yards in 2016 and trailed only Rob Gronkowski last year. On a team that desperately needs playmakers, only Adam Shaheen is a lock to be part of the Bears’ long-term plans at tight end.

“I don’t like to use the word ‘potential,’ but [Shaheen] has talent,” Nagy said. “So for us, it’s going to be really neat to try to fit him into our scheme and see where he fits.”

Chiefs' Kareem Hunt: May get more targets | CBS Sports

Hunt's pass-catching potential was a major draw after he caught 41 balls for 403 yards his senior season at Toledo, and he made good on that promise by catching 53 of 63 targets for 455 yards and three touchdowns as a rookie, despite losing much of the passing-down work to Charcandrick West.

Could the Cleveland Browns break tradition and select a running back No. 1? | LA Times

Consider what Ezekiel Elliot has meant to Dallas, Todd Gurley has meant to the Rams, Leonard Fournette to Jacksonville, Le'Veon Bell to Pittsburgh, and Kareem Hunt to Kansas City. It wasn't so long ago that people were talking about the dwindling importance of running backs in the league, but now everything points to the contrary.

Florida State's Derwin James to Cowboys fans: 'I feel like they gotta trade up' | USA Today

“I can do it all. I can play deep, I can cover No. 2 (receiver), I can play the tight end, I can play in the box, I can blitz – whatever you need,” said (Derwin) James, who measured in at 6-2, 215 and has drawn comparisons to Chiefs all-pro Eric Berry.

Auburn's Jeff Holland aims to show speed, athleticism at NFL Combine | AL.com

The same has been done by Dee Ford and Carl Lawson as they moved from the edge at Auburn, where they'd split time upright and with a hand down, to playing upright at 3-4 outside rushers as pros.

Around Town: NFL Films takes role in Touchdowns and Tutus fundraiser | CantonRep.com

Celebrity judges are Olympic Gold Medalist Dominique Moceanu, and Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware, running backs for the Kansas City Chiefs. Ahmaad Crump, in arena host for the Cleveland Cavaliers, is the emcees for Touchdowns and Tutus.

Around the league

Steelers expected to franchise tag Le'Veon Bell | NFL.com

The second tag for Bell in two seasons is set to pay the running back $14.544 million in 2018. The question is if/when Bell might sign the tag. He sat out all offseason workouts last year before putting pen to paper on the franchise tender.

Josh Rosen, Shaquem Griffin Stand Out at 2018 NFL Combine | SI.com

• ​Love this story. Follow the bouncing compensatory draft pick:

March 13, 2017: Eagles sign Chiefs free-agent quarterback Nick Foles.

Feb. 4, 2018: Foles leads Eagles to Super Bowl 52 win, cops Super Bowl MVP.

Feb. 23, 2018: Chiefs awarded sixth-round compensatory pick, No. 209, for loss of Foles in free-agency.

Feb. 23, 2018: Chiefs agree to trade 209th pick to Rams as part of Marcus Peters trade, but that trade can’t officially happen till the March 14 opening of the 2018 league year.

March 2, 2018: Rams agree to trade 209th pick to Dolphins as part of Robert Quinn trade, but that trade can’t officially happen till the Rams acquire the 209th pick from Kansas City, which can’t officially happen, obviously, till the March 14 opening of the league year.

Ryan Shazier: 'I'm going to come back and play' - NFL.com

"One thing I know about Ryan Shazier," Gorscak said, "I ain't betting against him coming back."

NFL Combine 2018: Plenty of Kirk Cousins Speculation in Indianapolis | SI.com

In the case of McCarron and Keenum, it’s pretty easy to see a scenario where both cash in and get a chance to start in 2018, with the caveat that the team signing them could go ahead and draft a quarterback six weeks after the ink dries. It’s how the Eagles built their quarterback room in 2016, and how the Bears did it last year—a sort of new model of “over-investment” in the position.

Police searching for NFL's Aldon Smith | LA Times

Police are searching for suspended Oakland Raiders linebacker Aldon Smith, who is suspected of domestic violence.

One-handed prospect Shaquem Griffin stars at NFL combine | LA Times

"Everybody in the stands was hyping me up. I got the guys I'm here with hyping me up. It felt amazing," Griffin said. "I was ready to go. I was ready to attack it."

NFL Combine rocked by rising prospect’s medical discovery | New York Post

Utah defensive lineman Lowell Lotulelei says Michigan defensive lineman Maurice Hurst Jr. told him Saturday that he had been diagnosed with the same heart condition as Lotulelei’s older brother, Star.

In case you missed it at Arrowhead Pride

Look closer: Chiefs LB Justin Houston is still one of the best in the game

Houston has become controversial among Chiefs fans, quite likely due to the size of his contract and the fact that he was injured for much of 2015-16. So now, after a complete year in 2017 in which he only collected 9.5 sacks, there’s a very vocal contingent of fans that believes he is a non-impact player.

Chiefs could have had Rams DE Robert Quinn

If Quinn was offered in the deal, the Chiefs declined, instead sending a sixth-rounder along with Peters to the Rams in exchange for a 2019 second-round pick and a 2018 fourth-round pick.

PODCAST: Replacing Marcus Peters through the NFL Draft

Today, we’re launching the Arrowhead Pride Chiefs Draft Show. During draft season, I’ll be talking about prospects and how they might fit with the Chiefs. We’ll go more in-depth on prospects from the weekly Draftmas List articles and also adding prospects to the list on the show.