{"id":695114,"date":"2026-01-22T01:13:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T01:13:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/695114\/"},"modified":"2026-01-22T01:13:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T01:13:26","slug":"chiefs-mock-draft-k-c-targets-top-notre-dame-rb-star-indiana-db","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/695114\/","title":{"rendered":"Chiefs Mock Draft: K.C. targets top Notre Dame RB, star Indiana DB"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Kansas City Chiefs<\/a> will enter the coming offseason with various needs to fill during free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n

While it is yet unclear which players might be available for Kansas City to sign during free agency, the strengths and weaknesses of this year’s draft class are more clearly defined.<\/p>\n

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Take a look at this full seven-round mock draft, which projects that Chiefs<\/a> general manager Brett Veach simply selects the best prospects available, regardless of Kansas City’s specific needs, which have (hypothetically) already been addressed during free agency:<\/p>\n

Round 1, Pick No. 9: Notre Dame Fighting Irish RB Jeremiyah Love\"Notre<\/p>\n

Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love (4) runs the ball into the end zone for a touchdown in the first half of a NCAA football game against Syracuse at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, in South Bend.<\/p>\n

Love could singlehandedly revitalize the Chiefs’ ground game, and while contemporary draft strategies tend to avoid taking running backs this early, Kansas City shouldn’t pass up the opportunity to pick the draft’s most exciting rusher, if given the chance.<\/p>\n

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Round 2, Pick No. 40: Florida Gators DL Caleb Banks\"Georgia<\/p>\n

Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Carson Beck (15) is pressured by Florida Gators defensive lineman Caleb Banks (88) during the third quarter of an NCAA football game Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. Georgia defeated Florida 43-20.<\/p>\n

The Chiefs found themselves short of capable interior linemen in 2026, and look to shore up their defensive front by selecting Banks, who may develop into one of the class’s best run-stuffers.<\/p>\n

Round 3, Pick No. 74: Indiana Hoosiers<\/a> DB D’Angelo Ponds\"Indiana's<\/p>\n

Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds (5) celebrates after the College Football Playoff National Championship college football game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026.<\/p>\n

Kansas City’s secondary is already stacked with young talent, but the addition of a proven ballhawk like Ponds could put the Chiefs’ defense over the top.<\/p>\n

Round 4, Pick No. 109: Cincinnati Bearcats DL Dontay Corleone\"Sep<\/p>\n

Sep 6, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats defensive lineman Dontay Corleone (2) stands on the field against the Bowling Green Falcons in the first half at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Veach takes another big swing at solving the issues with Kansas City’s defensive line depth by picking Corleone, who projects as a capable rookie backup with potential to develop into a regular contributor.<\/p>\n

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Round 5, Pick No. 148: Oklahoma Sooners<\/a> WR Deion Burks\"Oklahoma<\/p>\n

Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Deion Burks (4) leaps to the end zone past Louisiana State Tigers cornerback PJ Woodland (11) to score a touchdown during a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the LSU Tigers at Gaylord Family \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025. Oklahoma won 17-13.<\/p>\n

Burks could be among the best players on the board early in Round 5, and joins the Chiefs with a chance to crack Kansas City’s 53-man roster as a rookie.<\/p>\n

Round 5, Pick No. 176: Alabama Crimson Tide TE Josh Cuevas\"Nov<\/p>\n

Nov 15, 2025; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama tight end Josh Cuevas (80) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against Oklahoma at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Oklahoma defeated Alabama 23-21. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

As the Chiefs’ final pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, Cuevas will compete with Noah Gray, Jared Wiley, and Jake Briningstool to back up \u2014 or potentially replace \u2014 star tight end Travis Kelce.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Chiefs Wire: 2026 NFL Draft: Chiefs pick top Notre Dame RB, star Indiana DB early<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Kansas City Chiefs will enter the coming offseason with various needs to fill during free agency and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":662495,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2063],"tags":[4955,30253,346,44549,22841,7,4609,4725,4499,8569,118,110,2438,2437,6,7626,4732,1787,500],"class_list":["post-695114","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-2026-nfl-draft","tag-caleb-banks","tag-chiefs","tag-deion-burks","tag-dontay-corleone","tag-football","tag-free-agency","tag-indiana-hoosiers","tag-jake-briningstool","tag-jared-wiley","tag-kansas-city","tag-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-kansascity","tag-kansascitychiefs","tag-nfl","tag-noah-gray","tag-notre-dame-fighting-irish","tag-oklahoma-sooners","tag-travis-kelce"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115936102301403236","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/695114","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=695114"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/695114\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/662495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=695114"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=695114"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=695114"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}