How Elam’s Signing Affects Chiefs in Draft

Positional priority

Besides, the Chiefs desperately need an edge rusher more than they need a cornerback. And just because the Chiefs don’t take a cornerback at 9 doesn’t mean they’ll shun the position over the rest of the draft.

“We don't want to be picking at 9 every year,” general manager Brett Veach said Feb. 24, “but we're excited to add some young talent to this roster. And I think even more excitingly, those second, third rounds, where I felt like in years past, Day 1 came and went and we'd come in there and there'd be five or six players but you knew at 32 in Round 2, you wouldn't get them, either.

“So, it's not just the first round. I think we have an opportunity to really capitalize here and add a lot of talent throughout the course of the draft weekend.”

Motley crew of cornerbacks

Elam joins an eccentric mix of Chiefs cornerbacks that includes Nohl Williams, a pleasant surprise in the third round last year who shined as a rookie. Expect Williams to lock down one side of the field for Kansas City.

The group also includes veteran Kristian Fulton, who signed a two-year, $20 million deal last March. Elam will push Fulton for the other starting opportunity, with veteran Kader Kohou in the slot. Another second-year player, undrafted free agent Kevin Knowles, will join the mix with Chris Roland-Wallace, returning from a season-ending back injury.

Roland-Wallace’s absence in Steve Spagnuolo’s secondary over the season’s final six weeks was notable. Kansas City was a much better unit with him in the mix.

But the Chiefs have patented a cornerback-development recipe that’s better than any NFL team during Veach’s tenure. Expect them to take at least one cornerback among their nine selections in the April 23-25 draft. And, expect Spagnuolo to provide a lot of feedback because, unlike his prior six offseasons with the Chiefs, he’s had plenty of time to break down college film.

Other intriguing cornerbacks that have been linked with the Chiefs include Clemson’s Avieon Terrell, Tennessee’s Colton Hood, South Carolina’s Brandon Cisse and Arizona State’s Keith Abney.

D’Angelo Ponds is also an interesting prospect later in the draft. A national champion at Indiana, he covered future Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith at Chaminade-Madonna Prep in Hollywood, Fla.

Another one is Hood’s Volunteers teammate, Jermod McCoy. He ran a 4.52-second 40-yard dash after ACL surgery ended his 2025 season. He’s also a product of Whitehouse (Texas) High School, which also produced Patrick Mahomes.