Lance Zierlein’s latest mock draft has the Chiefs taking a center

NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein’s third mock draft was published on Monday afternoon. In it, he called for the Kansas City Chiefs to take a center with the 31st overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

31. Landon Dickerson · C · Alabama

Dickerson is a coach’s dream with his infectious attitude, toughness and versatility along the interior. The only thing preventing him from being a first-round lock is a concerning injury history.

In his second mock — just 10 days earlier — Zierlein also chose Dickerson for the Chiefs at 31. In his first mock of the offseason in early February, he went with Northwestern cornerback Greg Newsome II.

In Zierlein’s estimation, just four offensive tackles — Penei Sewell, Rashawn Slater, Christian Darrisaw and Teven Jenkins — will be off the board before the Chiefs are on the clock. So he expects the Chiefs to pass on the opportunity to take Sam Cosmi, Dillon Radunz, Alex Leatherwood and Liam Eichenberg (among others) in order to upgrade the middle of the line.

Since one could argue that the Chiefs’ offseason moves seem to have been geared towards strengthening the interior of the offensive line, there is some logic to Zierlein’s idea. But the Chiefs have third-year player Nick Allegretti available to play at center — or to be the backup if Austin Reiter cannot find a better opportunity in free agency. Their options at tackle — at least for now — are less clear.

Would the Chiefs pass on the available tackles to take Dickerson? And if they were prioritizing center, would they take Dickerson over... say... Creed Humphrey?

I wouldn’t think so, but the draft can be full of surprises.