Both of the Kansas City Chiefs’ starting outside cornerbacks are set to become free agents in 2021. Bashaud Breeland will be a free agent again after re-signing on a one-year deal. Charvarius Ward will be a restricted free agent, so it’s likely that he’ll be back at least for that season. There is a need to find some cheap options in the draft to eventually replace one or both of these players.
Kansas City has been interested in adding a cornerback since the 2018 NFL Draft. They had a strong interest in now-Vikings cornerback Mike Hughes in 2018. We learned on the Chiefs’ 2019 documentary series “The Franchise” that the team also had an interest in many of the corners selected at the top of the second round in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Will 2020 be the year the Chiefs land a cornerback early in the draft? Here’s a look at some of the cornerback prospects Kansas City could consider in each round of the 2020 NFL Draft:
Round 1: TCU CB Jeff Gladney
At 5-10 and 191 pounds, Gladney is one of the smaller corners getting first-round consideration, but he has good length with 32-inch arms. One thing that stands out with Gladney is his durability. He’s been a four-year starter at TCU appearing in 46 career games with the team, missing no time due to injury.
Gladney is an athletic cover corner, and while he doesn’t have the desired measurables, he never shies away from the competition. He knows how to fight through the catch point against bigger receivers. He’s very aggressive when defending the run.
Gladney has drawn a lot of interest from the Chiefs in the pre-draft process. Some view him as the No. 3 corner behind Jeff Okudah and C.J. Henderson, so the Chiefs might have to get lucky to draft him here.