Chiefs GM Brett Veach says there were no ‘real surprises’ in Round 1
The first round of the 2021 NFL draft turned out just as Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach expected, or at least that is what he’d have you believe. As the first round of the draft wrapped on Monday, the Chiefs were content with their decision to trade for Orlando Brown Jr. from the Ravens.
They were also content in their decision to stay out of the first round and hang onto both of their second-round picks. According to Veach, there weren’t any big curveballs in the first round.
“I think it kind of played out,” Veach said. “I don’t think there were any real surprises. I think when you get to the last four or five picks, those are always guys some teams have in one, some teams have in two, some teams have in mid-two. I think you look at the draft, in the first 18 to 24 picks, these were guys that if we didn’t have in one we had in early two. Then, I would say pretty much even toward the end there, these guys, I mean obviously (Payton) Turner, (Eric) Stokes, (Gregory) Rousseau, the pass rusher from Penn State (Jayson Oweh), (Joe) Tryon, these were all guys that we liked right in that range. I don’t think there were any new surprises or any big curveballs, but that’s typical for a first round. I would say every year there’s a couple. Well, I don’t know if there were really any this year, but there certainly will be a lot more tomorrow and that’s why I think having those two twos will be very advantageous for us.”
While there weren’t any real surprises in the first round, Veach is expecting the unexpected as soon as the draft picks up tomorrow. That’s one of the reasons why he felt landing Orlando Brown Jr. in trade and having picks No. 58 and No. 63 in the second round is so important. The combination provides the Chiefs with what he described as “maximum flexibility” in a portion of the draft that he feels is a “hot zone.”
“We can go O-Line, we can go D-Line, we can go corner, we can go safety, linebacker,” Veach said. “So I think that’s the benefit of where we are and having those two twos that we’re not pigeonholed into saying, ‘we need a left tackle, we’ve got to get this taken care of.’ Once we addressed that need and we were able to acquire another second-round pick, it really opened up the entire board for us.”
While Chiefs Kingdom sleeps, Veach plans to meet with his staff. Together they’ll reassess the draft board after the first round. They’ll also work through different scenarios that could happen ahead of their picks. This is really when the front office can really begin to figure out the best strategy for their first two picks in the draft.
“I think we’re happy with the numbers and kind of how they worked out,” Veach said. “Again, having 58 and 63, I think we’re going to be in a good spot to get a couple of good players and have some flexibility. As far as the first round, again, I think it was kind of well documented that the quarterbacks were going to go early. There were obviously three really good wideouts and they went early and then it’s kind of just picking at some of those positions that we talked about during this process, the O-Line, D-Line or D-End position, and the cornerback position. There was a run at corners in the early part and then at the end there, there was a couple of corners that went off the board. I think it kind of played out, I mean not exactly, I don’t think it ever plays out exactly as you think, but I think in general from 1,000-foot view I think the players went maybe not in the order that you thought, but I think they all met kind of in those zones you thought they were going to go. I think the value here is really this second round into the mid-third and again, excited about having those two twos.”
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Best available players for Chiefs on Day 2 of 2021 NFL draft
