{"id":777050,"date":"2026-02-26T07:01:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T07:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/777050\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T07:01:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T07:01:15","slug":"andy-reids-coveted-draft-prospect-gets-honest-about-chiefs-chris-jones-amid-heavy-interest-from-rivals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/777050\/","title":{"rendered":"Andy Reid\u2019s Coveted Draft Prospect Gets Honest About Chiefs & Chris Jones Amid Heavy Interest from Rivals"},"content":{"rendered":"

After missing the playoffs, the Kansas City Chiefs<\/a> are looking to improve their roster through the upcoming draft, with head coach Andy Reid and GM Brett Veach maximizing their opportunities at the NFL Combine. With many exciting names on the table, the Chiefs\u2019 leadership has received a major boost as one of their defensive prospects has expressed excitement about playing in Kansas City with his idol, Chris Jones.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I have met with the Kansas City Chiefs,\u201d Texas Tech\u2019s David Bailey said, as per Ryan Linkletter. \u201cA great team, a great staff. I really enjoyed my meeting there. I\u2019d be honored to rush alongside Chris Jones.\u201d<\/p>\n

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While opening up on his interest in lining up next to Chris Jones, David Bailey also shared how the Kansas City representation made him feel welcomed during his interview with the franchise.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a comfortable meeting; I felt comfortable with them,\u201d Bailey said, as per KC Star reporter Pete Sweeney. \u201cThey were extremely personal, and we talked a little bit of ball. I just felt comfortable. I didn\u2019t feel stressed at all. They made me feel welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chiefs have interviewed David Bailey after their defensive line finished the 2025-26 season with a PFF grade of 60.8, ranking it 20th in the league.<\/p>\n

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Similarly, the Chiefs only recorded 35 sacks as a team in 2025 (tied for 22nd in the NFL). With reinforcements needed, Bailey could emerge as a perfect prospect for Andy Reid and Co., after the Texas Tech defensive end recorded 52 total tackles, 14.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and three defended passes, while leading the Big 12 with 19.5 tackles for loss.<\/p>\n

As Kansas City will pick in the top 10 for the first time since 2017, when they drafted Patrick Mahomes<\/a>, ESPN\u2019s Matt Miller also named David Bailey as the Chiefs\u2019 choice in the upcoming 2026 NFL draft.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough he isn\u2019t the big-bodied defensive end Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo prefers, the 6-foot-3, 250-pound Bailey has speed off the snap and the ability to chase down quarterbacks,\u201d Miller wrote. \u201cThe Chiefs had only 35 sacks as a team in 2025 (tied for 22nd in the NFL), so Bailey would give their pass rush a jolt with his agility and power.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking at these signs, it appears that Andy Reid could go all-in on David Bailey with Kansas City\u2019s ninth overall pick. However, the Chiefs aren\u2019t alone in search of a talented defensive lineman and hence are set to face tough competition from teams picking before them.<\/p>\n

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Chiefs face tough competition in the David Bailey sweepstakes<\/p>\n

Alongside Kansas City, David Bailey has been in the crosshairs of two teams picking towards the top of the 2026 NFL draft. These franchises are the New York Jets<\/a> and the Arizona Cardinals<\/a>, who finished their 2025 seasons on a disappointing note and hold the second and third picks, respectively.<\/p>\n

ESPN\u2019s Jack Fitzpatrick revealed that the Cardinals have interviewed David Bailey, who said he had a \u201creally great meeting\u201d with the franchise, as per Arizona Sports. Similarly, the Jets also have their eyes on Bailey, with beat writer Nick Faria revealing that the New York front office is ready to pick him second.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally easy to be impressed by David Bailey,\u201d Faria wrote on X. \u201cGraduated from Stanford in three years before dominating with Tech. Will absolutely be in consideration for the #Jets at 2.\u201d<\/p>\n

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David Bailey has all the makings of a perfect fit in Kansas City, but the Chiefs may need to trade up if they want to beat the Jets and Cardinals to the punch. But one thing is certain: the Texas Tech standout is one of the most coveted names in this draft class, and his landing spot on draft night will be one of the most closely watched storylines of this upcoming draft.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After missing the playoffs, the Kansas City Chiefs are looking to improve their roster through the upcoming draft,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":777051,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2063],"tags":[501,375,390,346,2025,4155,7,118,110,2438,2437,255,6,927,499,2299],"class_list":{"0":"post-777050","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kansas-city-chiefs","8":"tag-andy-reid","9":"tag-arizona","10":"tag-arizona-cardinals","11":"tag-chiefs","12":"tag-chris-jones","13":"tag-david-bailey","14":"tag-football","15":"tag-kansas-city","16":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","17":"tag-kansascity","18":"tag-kansascitychiefs","19":"tag-new-york-jets","20":"tag-nfl","21":"tag-nfl-combine","22":"tag-patrick-mahomes","23":"tag-texas-tech"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116135649821860685","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777050","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=777050"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777050\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/777051"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}