The Kansas City Chiefs are back in the Super Bowl once again. Sure, they have Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, but the Chiefs’ roster construction, led by general manager Brett Veach, has allowed the organization to reach these heights without compromising sustainability.
A total of 66.0% of Kansas City’s roster began its professional careers within the organization either as a draft pick or an undrafted free agent. Here is how that breaks down by when they were selected:
First round: 6Second round: 6Third round: 4Fourth round: 3Fifth round: 3Sixth round: 1Seventh round: 4Undrafted free agent: 8
By comparison, the division rival Raiders have just two of their first-round picks on the roster: edge rusher Tyree Wilson (2023) and running back Josh Jacobs (2019) despite making seven picks over the past five drafts.
The Chiefs opened the regular season by winning six of their first seven games. It was business as usual in the AFC West until the squad hit a rough patch post-bye week. Kansas City lost four of its first six games after the bye week, which is uncharacteristic of an Andy Reid team. The lull led many to wonder if they would be able to hold on to the division lead. Kansas City had seemingly lost all momentum until closing the regular season with two victories.
The offense struggled as it continued searching for its identity without Tyreek Hill. Pressure off the edge and drops defined Kansas City for a period of the season. Hired mercenaries were largely to blame for those struggles. The defense of the Chiefs making another postseason run was always centered around quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is now four quarters away from matching Tom Brady’s Super Bowl total through six seasons. Mahomes is unquestionably the game’s best quarterback, capable of turning a bad play into a positive.
The backbone of this roster is homegrown and, for that reason, they have a lot of…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/super-bowl-2024-how-chiefs-built-another-championship-caliber-roster-around-patrick-mahomes-through-nfl-draft/
Author : Josh Edwards
Publish date : 2024-02-06 22:43:45
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