FPC Chiefs 2021 Mock Draft: Holecek 3.0

The clock continues to tick, as the 2021 NFL Draft is getting closer and closer. Teams will be making their first round selections in just over two weeks from today. The rumor mill continues to be hot and heavy, especially for the top of the draft. Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs have given themselves some possible flexibility with how they attack the draft, given their areas of need. We try to bring that to fruition today in our latest FPC Chiefs Mock Draft. To read our first two mock drafts from this spring, you can go here and here.

With this particular exercise, I did use a mock draft machine over at The Draft Network. We did not have any trades involved in the first two mock drafts, based off of how the board fell. However, that changed this time around. The Chiefs began the draft with eight selections. But due to trades, there were only seven picks made in this mock. Without further ado, let’s take a look at what our third draft haul resulted in.

1st Round- 31st Overall

Dyami Brown, Wide Receiver, North Carolina

Based off of how the board fell, I did not feel comfortable reaching for an offensive tackle, to just simply fill a need. Instead, give me one of the top players available. For my money, this North Carolina wide receiver is well worth a late first round pick. Dyami Brown consistently put up massive amounts of production for the Tar Heels offense season after season. Due to his ball skills and big play ability, he has a chance to score on seemingly every play. His spatial awareness in the open field would fit in well with the likes of Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce. Brown also has a sneaky physical side, that he uses to his advantage in contested catch situations or after the catch. This selection could immediately fill the WR2 hole that Kansas City currently has. For more on Brown, read our draft profile of him from March here.

2nd Round- 63rd Overall

Spencer Brown, Offensive Tackle, Northern Iowa

The athletic ability that Spencer Brown has, combined with his size (6’8”, 315 pounds), made him an easy selection for me here at offensive tackle. The other option I thought about was BYU’s Brady Christensen. Yet, I thought the Northern Iowa product would have a smoother transition into Andy Reid‘s offense. Going back to his athletic ability, Brown has tremendous body control and balance. His smooth movement skills show up a lot more in his pass sets. And, this blocker has the football IQ and length to toy with opposing defenders. The nastiness and finishing ability was the main difference for me in making Spencer the pick here to end round two.

3rd Round- 78th Overall

Payton Turner, Defensive End, Houston

Houston pass rusher Payton Turner in a game against Tulane, 2020.

TRADE ALERT!

The Chiefs acquire: 3rd round pick (78th overall)

The Vikings acquire: 3rd round pick (94th overall) and 5th round pick (175th overall)

Our first trade comes here in the third round. The pass rushers were starting to come off the board one after another. As a result, I felt it was completely necessary to trade up 16 spots and take one that was worth it. Houston’s Payton Turner has all the makings of a Steve Spagnuolo defensive end. A natural fit in a 4-3 defensive front, he has the powerful hands, the length and the hand to hand combat needed to hang on the edge. There will certainly be some development needed with his pass rush moves. Though, Turner has surprisingly good movement skills and flexibility, given his size (6’5”, 270 pounds). After the addition of Jarran Reed, the need to add to the pass rush is softened a bit for the Chiefs. But, Turner could end up being worth a gamble here in round three in order to grow that part of the team.

4th Round- 144th Overall

David Moore, Interior Offensive Lineman, Grambling State

I was ecstatic to see Grambling State’s David Moore available here at the end of round four. His big, wide frame makes it difficult for defenders to get by him. Add in his mean style, and the Chiefs could be adding a long term blocker who could dominate. Generally playing guard in college, Moore showed how well he could do at center at the Senior Bowl in January. The strength he displayed, both in his arms and in his core, led to many winning reps in Mobile. Moore also showed encouraging movement skills during that week, whether it was climbing to the second level or pulling laterally. Despite signing Austin Blythe, the Chiefs could find their long term center option here with the Grambling State product.

5th Round- 146th Overall

Bryan Mills, Cornerback, North Carolina Central

North Carolina Central cornerback Bryan Mills had five interceptions and 13 pass deflections in 2019.

TRADE ALERT!

The Chiefs acquire: 5th round pick (146th overall) and 6th round pick (186th overall)

The Jets acquire: 4th round pick (136th overall) and 6th round pick (207th overall)

Basically in this trade scenario, I elected to move back slightly because I did not love the board. I wanted to see a few more players go off to end round four, before my next selection. Another part of the strategy was making sure my last pick was as early as I could possibly make it (186th overall), and stacking multiple selections close together in the order.

Bryan Mills fits the Kansas City Chiefs mold at cornerback in more ways than one. The former JUCO product, and later on North Carolina Central product, has tremendous length to pair with sturdy size at 6’1” and 190 pounds. Mills still plays bigger than his size indicates. The defender is physical at the catch point and consistently showed he could shut receivers down in press man coverage. Kansas City likes to utilize that look plenty of times throughout the game. Meanwhile, his ball production continues to fly under the radar. The Chiefs recent additions at corner have been on day three of the draft and have been players from “small school” programs as well.

5th Round- 181st Overall

Malcolm Koonce, Defensive End, Buffalo

Inexperience and the need to build more strength could make Malcolm Koonce slide a bit on day three. In the meantime, there is still so much that he has to offer as a pass rusher. His lanky and long armed frame is used to his advantage. Koonce has a tactical style with how he uses his arms to get around opposing blockers. He is well versed with a wide array of pass rush counters, including club, rip, swim and power moves. To boot, Koonce has the natural athleticism and quickness to become a nuisance for offenses, even if he cannot win the rep initially. His motor and explosiveness can lead to stops being made on any area of the field. I felt the need to double dip at EDGE in this mock draft. With Koonce, you get a bit of a different flavor from the style that Payton Turner would be adding to Kansas City’s roster. Both could be very effective in a multitude of ways.

6th Round- 186th Overall

Trevon Grimes, Wide Receiver, Florida

Another spot where I double dipped in this mock draft was wide receiver. You have Kyle Pitts and Kadarius Toney in this draft class. But still, you should not forget about the other Florida Gators pass catcher in this year’s group. That would be Trevon Grimes. With encouraging size (6’3” and 220 pounds) and solid athleticism, there really is plenty of potential with this player. He showed he could be a vertical threat down the field with the Gators. Due to comfort in contested catch situations and soft, natural hands, Grimes has a chance to produce consistently in the right situation. That never truly resonated at Florida. Though, the tantalizing physical tools of his could result in multiple scoring chances at the next level.

Be on the lookout for our final FPC Chiefs mock draft in two weeks. We will also have more draft prospect profiles throughout the rest of this week. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9 //platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs //platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.

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