Chiefs April Madness: 32-player bracket for pick 32

With the NFL Draft less than a month from now, it’s time to really start thinking about whom we want to see the Kansas City Chiefs select in the first round.

Since many of us are stuck at home (and every in-season sport is shut down) we’re probably all taking in a lot more draft information than usual — and since the NCAA’s March Madness tournament was canceled, I thought it would be fun to create a bracket for the Chiefs’ first pick of the draft.

So starting on Wednesday, we will set up polls with head-to-head matchups pitting two first-round draft prospects against each other. Each popular-vote winner will advance to the next round, progressing through the Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four and championship.

These 32 prospects all are all listed in the KC Draft Guide, which will be published this Monday. For the sake of realism, I started by eliminating all of the players with a first-round grade, then seeding the next 32 prospects in order into four brackets: Super Bowl Champs, World Champions, Repeat Time and NFL Winners.

No thought process is right or wrong. Vote for the player you’d rather have, the one you like more or the one you think the Chiefs will take; it’s up to you. We start voting below.

Here’s the bracket:

Super Bowl Champs

The headliner of this group is Jerry Jeudy, who has the KC Draft Guide’s highest grade outside the first round — and in typical bracket fashion, this has led to what should be an easier bracket.

Also in the bracket are a quarterback and three running backs who should all be considered long shots for the Chiefs in round one. The difficult part of this region is in the bottom half, with the incredibly high upside of secondary players C.J. Henderson, Grant Delpit and Trevon Diggs. In this region, it will be interesting to see if position of need or best player available — or a mix of those — reigns supreme.

Key first round matchup: S Grant Delpit (LSU) vs. CB Trevon Diggs (Alabama)

Right out of the gate, two of the more talented defensive backs in the draft class face off. Delpit had an injury-riddled 2019 season — but his very impressive 2018 season showed versatility and rare playmaking ability. One of the best center field prospects in recent years, Delpit also brings some man coverage ability to the slot. Diggs is still learning the cornerback position and shows ups and downs — but his size and athletic profile make him an incredible zone-specific cornerback prospect. He has some incredible plays that showcase a high intelligence for a young player but other moments where he doesn’t look ready for the big moment.

Other matchups:

WR Jerry Jeudy (Alabama) vs. RB D’Andre Swift (Georgia)

Jeudy was one of the most hyped wide receivers this year and did nothing to curb that excitement until the NFL Combine. Testing out as a relatively average athletic profile as a wide receiver has stalled some of Jeudy’s hype, but his route running paired with start-and-stop ability make him a near round one lock. Swift is often listed as the best running back in the class due to his physical running style and pass-catching ability. His pass protection is top of the class but the issue simply comes down to the positional value of a running back.

QB Jordan Love (Utah State) vs. RB Jonathan Taylor (Wisconsin)

Love is a high-upside, high-risk quarterback prospect that is often compared to Patrick Mahomes coming out of Texas Tech. His arm talent, mobility and ability to throw from different platforms are going to be incredibly enticing but his decision making is incredibly inconsistent. Taylor is the top competition for Swift at running back, as he brings an even better running pedigree and athletic profile. His vision, power and top-end speed are all incredible, and he flashed quality hands as a receiver in his final season.

CB CJ Henderson (Florida) vs. RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire (LSU)

Henderson is the top athlete at the cornerback position. He flashes some of the best man-coverage traits in the class. His size and athleticism allow him to mirror and match wide receivers all over the field, carrying them vertically or from sideline to sideline. He has incredible ball skills but has some lapses in technique and with his eyes in zone coverage. Edwards-Helaire is my personal RB1 — his game centers around his ability as a receiver. He has some of the best hands and the best routes out of any running back in this class and then pairs great vision and contact balance as a runner with the elite receiving traits.

The vote

Check back in the coming days for the next region.

KC Draft Guide

The Chiefs look to be targeting the draft for major additions to their roster. We’ll cover it here on Arrowhead Pride in its usual format, but if you want MORE in-depth analysis on the draft, we’ve got you covered. Order the KC Draft Guide to get 225+ player profiles, special features, Chiefs fits for each position and quotes directly from the players on how they would feel to end up in Kansas City!

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