Exactly one week before the draft, Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach may have teased his ultimate plan for the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
“It should be an entertaining night,” he said. “And there will probably be a lot of trades.”
Indeed Veach made the first overall trade on the first night of the draft, trading the Chiefs’ ninth overall pick, a third rounder (74th overall ) and fifth rounder (108th overall) for the Cleveland Browns’ sixth overall pick so that the Chiefs could select cornerback Mansoor Delane.
It continues Veach’s aggressive ways — particularly in the first round of the NFL drafts. The Chiefs have made a trade to move around in the first round of the NFL draft in three of the last four years.
Last year they swapped spots with the Philadelphia Eagles and still landed the player they coveted — offensive tackle Josh Simmons.
In 2024 and 2022 they traded up in the first round to select wide receiver Xavier Worthy and cornerback Trent McDuffie, respectively.
Veach’s latest draft trade will help the void left by McDuffie.
The Los Angeles Rams traded for McDuffie and then made him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history, signing him to a four-year, $124 million extension that includes $100 million guaranteed. Shortly thereafter, they also signed cornerback Jaylen Watson to three-year, $51 million deal with $34 million guaranteed.
Last year’s No. 6 overall pick, Ashton Jeanty, signed a four-year, $36 million contract with the Las Vegas Raiders, including a signing bonus of more than $22 million.
What The Chiefs Are Getting With Delane
Delane was considered the top cornerback in the draft, and it’s something the confident Delane himself asserted at the NFL Combine.
“I’m the best corner in the class,” he said. “Put the film on.”
The 6-0, 190-pounder did not run at the Combine but posted a blazing 4.38 in the 40 at his LSU Pro Day.
Before transferring to LSU for his senior year, he began his career at Virginia Tech. Primarily a left or field cornerback, he is adept in various coverages.
“Whether it’s a man, zone,” Delane said. “I’m a person who can do it all.”
He had two interceptions and an impressive 11 passes defended last year.
Delane also recorded 45 tackles (26 of them solo), showing he embraces contact and provides run support.
“I love being in the box,” he said. “I’m going to bring the fight to you … If I had the choice, I’d play middle linebacker.”
Veach’s Sneaky Approach
Veach was aggressive as usual — while also being a bit surreptitious.
Though many pundits had the Chiefs selecting someone like Rueben Bain, who they visited with frequently — including at the Chiefs facility — the team’s interest in Delane flew under the radar.
“They wanted to keep it quiet,” Delane said, “and make that sneak move.”
On one hand Veach was sneaky. On the other hand, he might have telegraphed the Chiefs were interested in making a trade by emphasizing it would be a draft featuring frequent deals.
“When you don’t have two or three franchise quarterbacks and a Will Anderson or a Myles Garrett,” Veach said last Thursday, “it does lend itself to open up to a lot of fun and a lot of excitement.”
