Remarkably, the Kansas City Chiefs will return all of their receivers from their Super Bowl-winning season. The team re-signed Demarcus Robinson and reworked Sammy Watkins’ contract to lower his cap hit. That means all of the top targets for Patrick Mahomes will be back for the 2020 season.
Still, as Brett Veach said in his pre-draft press conference, the Chiefs are planning not just for the 2020 NFL season but with the future in mind. Both Robinson and Watkins are scheduled to become free agents again in 2021, which puts a future need on adding players to the receiver room. Here’s a look at some of the wide receiver prospects Kansas City could consider in each round of the 2020 NFL Draft:
Round 1: Arizona State WR Brandon Aiyuk
There’s a lot to like about Aiyuk’s game. At 6-foot and 205 pounds, he has good size and physicality for the NFL game. He’s an extremely explosive athlete with the ball in his hands, capable of turning a quick slant into a 70-yard touchdown. During his senior season at Arizona State, he more than doubled his yardage total from the season prior with just 32 more catches.
His athletic testing proved that his tape wasn’t a fluke, running a 4.5 40-yard dash at the combine and posting a 40-inch vertical leap. Aiyuk also has upside as a return man on both punts and kicks. He had some of the top production at kick returner in the country in 2019.
Many believe that Aiyuk is the superior prospect to N’Keal Harry, who was also from Arizona State and was drafted at pick No. 32 last season. This option would help the Chiefs keep a healthy arsenal of weapons for QB Patrick Mahomes.