With a week to go until the 2020 NFL Draft, Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach held his pre-draft conference call on Thursday.
This is the first time in the past two seasons that the Chiefs are slated to have a first-round pick, but picking at No. 32 provides some unique obstacles. When it comes to predicting what will happen in the 31 picks prior, Veach warns to expect the unexpected.
“Obviously, it’s good to have the 32nd pick in the draft, knowing that you’re Super Bowl champs,” Veach began. “When you’re sitting at 32 — we all look at the mock drafts and do our own mock drafts — the only issue with that is that there are just so many variables.
“There’s always a couple of twists and turns in the draft, but the further down you are, there are going to be more twists and turns. [For example] at 32 as opposed to at 10. If you’re sitting there at 10 there are only so many things that can happen, by the time you get to 32, there could be two or three scenarios. Not that we don’t anticipate, because in the last few days I feel like we went through every scenario possible.”
While the Chiefs try to prepare as best they can for all the different twists and turns that they may face in the draft, they feel comfortable with many of the position groups. He even feels that people might be surprised at the players available at the end of the first round.
(Paraphrased)
"I think there are a lot of people who will be available (late in the first round) that the public didn't think would be there."
~ #Chiefs GM Brett Veach teases #ChiefsKingdom to finish out his video call.
— BJ Kissel (@ChiefsReporter) April 16, 2020
At the same time, Veach is not looking to box the team into drafting a specific player or position, because he knows the goal is to build the team for the long haul and not just the upcoming season.
“There are certain positions where we feel good in the first 2-3 rounds,” Veach said. “There are certain positions that aren’t as deep. But I think you guys have kind of seen our approach with free agency and just being able to always stick to the best player available philosophy. We’re not just trying to build this thing for next year, but for the next 5-10 years. So to sit here and say a certain position isn’t in need, we don’t really look at it like that, because we’re looking at the roster 2-3 years from now… We’re just looking to add high-level talent and stick to that best player available philosophy.”
As you assemble your mock draft scenarios, it’s important to keep the needs of the future in mind for Kansas City. Veach has basically spelled out that they could draft for future needs as early as the first round, even if they already have a quality starter at that certain position.
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