Chiefs May Have Snagged the No. 1 Steal of the NFL Draft

Don’t look now, but the Kansas City Chiefs may have snagged the most underrated player in the NFL draft.

Are you surprised? You shouldn’t be. Head coach Andy Reid knows how to sniff out talent, and the team’s later 2026 NFL draft picks show why he’s successfully coached the Chiefs for more than a decade.

So, let’s look at what happened. During the draft, the Chiefs, as expected, heavily drafted defensive players, since they needed to bolster that part of their lineup, especially after trading corner Trent McDuffie.

The Chiefs traded up in the first round to get cornerback Mansoor Delane out of LSU with their No. 6 selection, and this could be the steal of the draft.

Ben Solak of ESPN agrees. In a roundup of his favorite and least favorite, picks from the draft, he names Delane a possible Defensive Rookie of the Year.

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In the piece, he says that the player “will have an unimpeded path to CB1 reps after they traded Trent McDuffie and let Jaylen Watson walk in free agency. Corners need production on the ball to win this award, and Delane will get tested as a rookie covering star receivers.”

He adds, “He was quite productive in college — 11 passes defensed in 11 games during his final season. Cornerbacks don’t win the award often, but all three winners this century were after 2014. It’s hard to put Delane clearly above the edge rushers, but when corners win Rookie of the Year, they look like this.”

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Why It Matters: Mansoor Delane to the Chiefs

So, what makes Delane such a steal? He’ll be one of the few rookies who become the team’s CB1 following McDuffie’s departure, and that’s exactly what the Chiefs needed going into this draft. It was the team’s main need, and they nailed it.

Delane fits the Chiefs like he’s been waiting for the call. He brings the kind of versatility that plays well in Kansas City’s defensive system. He’s raw in spots, but the traits are there.

So, good job, Reid. As usual, you knocked this pick out of the park, and that’ll show come September.

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This story was originally published May 2, 2026 at 1:13 PM.