With 2 1st-rounders, Chiefs Resemble Elite 2023 Quartet

Four clubs had multiple first-round selections that year, and those four teams combined to draft eight excellent players. The Super Bowl champion Seahawks solidified that fact on Monday morning when they agreed to a four-year, $168.6 million extension with Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

Seattle drafted the wide receiver 20th overall that night in Kansas City, 15 picks after Roger Goodell announced they’d selected cornerback Devon Witherspoon at No. 5. Smith-Njigba is the NFL’s reigning offensive player of the year. Witherspoon has three Pro Bowl selections in three NFL seasons.

Five teams have multiple first-rounders

It’s relevant to the Chiefs because, exactly a month before the 2026 draft, Kansas City is a team with multiple first-round picks. The Chiefs, who own the No. 9 and 29 selections after trading Trent McDuffie to the Rams, join the Jets (2 and 16), Browns (6 and 24), Dolphins (11 and 30) and Cowboys (12 and 20) in the NFL’s own Power Five, a quintet of teams with multiple first-round choices this year.

The four 2023 clubs with multiple first-round picks are also among the league’s best nine teams since that draft. Over the past three seasons, Detroit and Philadelphia are tied with Buffalo for the NFL’s best winning percentage (.706, 36-15). Seattle is tied with Baltimore for fourth (.647, 33-18). Meanwhile, Houston is tied with Kansas City, Denver and the Rams for sixth (.627, 32-19).

Philadelphia in 2023 added defensive tackle Jalen Carter at 9 and edge rusher Nolan Smith at 30. Houston got franchise quarterback C.J. Stroud at 2, then nailed the next pick with edge rusher Will Anderson at 3. Detroit wound up with the best value, though, snagging running back Jahmyr Gibbs at 12 and linebacker Jack Campbell at 18.

Those eight players taken in the first round that spring, in just three seasons, have combined for four Super Bowl rings, 14 Pro Bowl selections and three first-team All-Pro honors. In addition to Smith-Njigba’s 2025 offensive player of the year, Stroud and Anderson swept the respective offensive and defensive rookie of the year awards in 2023.

Returning head coach, established franchise QB

And like most of those teams in 2023, the Chiefs have a returning head coach with a franchise quarterback already in place. Seattle had Pete Carroll and Geno Smith, Detroit had Dan Campbell and Jared Goff and Philadelphia had Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts. That existing infrastructure was critical to providing fertile ground for each club’s first-round picks.

Houston, meanwhile, had a first-year head coach in DeMeco Ryans but needed only to wait until the second-overall pick to get its franchise quarterback, Stroud.

This year among the five teams with multiple first-round choices, only the Chiefs and Cowboys have returning head coaches with established franchise quarterbacks. Dallas has Brian Schottenheimer and Dak Prescott, while the Jets, Dolphins and Browns have either new head coaches, quarterback competitions or both.

Last year, the two teams with multiple first-rounders, Atlanta and the New York Giants, each fired their head coaches after the season.

In 2024, three teams had multiple first-round choices, Arizona, Chicago and Minnesota. The Cardinals and Bears have since fired their head coaches while the Vikings are likely about to make Kyler Murray their third starting quarterback in as many seasons.

Without question, if the Chiefs stick to their board and make solid first-round choices, because they have Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, history says they’ll follow the path of those four 2023 teams rather than the roller-coaster rides of the last five clubs.