Kansas City Chiefs Quick hits: We all know they have to add an impact O-lineman at some point. That goes without saying. My approach was to go O-line heavy, but I also wanted to look for a WR who could impact the offense, and a developmental DT or DE, depending how the board fell. A nice complementary RB and contributing CB were luxuries I also tried to keep my eyes open for. 2.38 Aireontae Ersery / OT - Minnesota 2.63 Kyle Williams / WR - Washington State 3.66 Oluwafemi Oladejo / EDR - UCLA 3.95 Emery Jones / OT - LSU 4.106 Damien Martinez / RB - Miami 4.133 Cobee Bryant / CB - Kansas 7.220 Simeon Barrow / Miami 7.226 Jamon Dumas-Johnson / LB - Kentucky 7.257 Jay Toia / DT - UCLA UDFA Brandon George / LB - Pittsburgh UDFA Coziah Izzard / DT - Penn State I was fairly stuck with what to do at 31. I was leaning either Ersery anyways, or swinging on a CB because I thought maybe the value would work. But I wasn't sure Ersery would survive too close to my next selection at 63, so I moved back a little, improving my selection once (257>220) and adding 4.106, which I had already planned to be the spot where I would swing for an RB to help the offense. I thought this would let me just spend 95 on BPA and still add the Rb I was interested in, knowing they have interviewed Martinez, and being a fan myself. So I added Ersery at a more palatable 38, doubled down with Emery Jones (played RT at LSU), giving me two beefy OT's to help make this run game more of a monster. Thinking perhaps that will help the post elite-Kelce era transition more smoothly, and protect Mahomes on a couple levels. Adding Williams gives us another short game weapon who can turn any touch into an explosive play. If him and Mahomes develop chemistry it could be tough for defenses. Oladejo at 66 to me is one of the big risers of the last month. Early Feb doing mocks online I could get him in the 100's. I literally read something this morning that suggested him creeping into the 1st isn't the wildest idea ever. Still, I think 45-65 is entirely possible. He's very strong on tape. And comes with a bend and a motor. Lots to like. I think he could be a great 4th or 5th Edge early and develop into more. Cobee Bryant was a nice find. Love his character and moxie. And I triple dipped at DT for the developmental aspect. Nothing behind Chris Jones is impressive. But none were earlier than 220, so it still wasn't a huge investment. But I do love the 3 guys I found. Only really need one to "hit". All in all pretty quality draft for them looking back. The two OT's are nice, and I like the approach I used.
I really like Maxen Hook, and he was next on my list to draft. I traded down from the 4th to the 5th and didn't expect my top safety choice (Jaylen Reed) to be available, but he fell. If Reed had been taken, I would have taken my CB choice (might still have been Korie Black, not sure) in round 5 and then taken Hook with my other pick.
You're probably right about Ersery not making it to 63. I had Ersery and Conerly as a sort of 1A/1B on my list for OT. You taking Ersery at 38 made my choice pretty simple at 46, and then three more linemen (all guards) were taken ahead of your pick at 63. Would all three have gone guard if Ersery was still on the board? If it's my choice, even if I needed a guard I'd be tempted to take Ersery anyway and move him inside to start his career. Other reason why he was a good choice for KC at 38 that you might not have noticed: he's a hometown kid. The other pick of yours that I almost took is Toia. When Eddie Goldman came out of retirement last year, that dropped sixth round rookie Zion Logue to the practice squad - and he was plucked in midseason. So now that Goldman has moved on via free agency, the only NT that I have is former XFL Battlehawk LaCale London. But Korie Black was still on the board, and he was on my short list in round five. Black is my sort of under the radar, pound the table to grab this guy while you can players, so just on principle I had to make him the choice. I liked what I saw of London in 2023, so I'm willing to give him that first shot at the NT spot under our new line coach. But heads up... we've had our NT prospects plucked away from our practice squad in each of the last two years. So if you stash Toia on your practice squad and I need a big plugger, I'm grabbing him.
This is where I usually have some fun if I do the same team twice... in the Dimitroff days, I would do one with a specific scenario and go about it as I figured Dimitroff would, and then I'd do the other completely my own way (which is more like a cross between current GM Terry Fontenot and Dimitroff's predecessor Rich McKay, who I think doesn't get the credit he should for the job he did as GM.) This time around I went with similar themes in both - putting some emphasis on 2026 and beyond rather than 2025, and going against the general media and NOT trying to add more picks this year. But I mostly went with different position groups between the two drafts... pure edge, then CB with the first two picks the first time, and LB/edge hybrid then OT with the first two picks in this one.
First off, a big thank you to @RTTRUTH and @LAOJoe for running their mock again this year. It's one of my favorite aspects of owning this forum. Second, I'd like to thank all of the GMs that participated. @matthewwillson29 @nybites @Lyman @Dcat @Underdog @Mountainpd @MaddHatter @Jeffrey Dowhan @StlCrtn @RicoL8 @BowserBroncos @Coach @Willie @Sbrabo26 @ovfd55 @Torgo @IrishDawg42 @SportsFanatic @Falcons Guy @Forge @HoboRocket This is a very solid group that I am looking forward to seeing back again next offseason. Hopefully, my schedule will be a bit different, and we can get back to having the GMO, and maybe some other group activities to spur draft conversation.
Outside of the dynasty league drafts we’ve had on here, this is probably my favorite thing on here. Danny and Joe do a fantastic job of making sure it runs smoothly throughout.
I was at my daughter's dance retreat for the last 5 days, so being able to keep up with things became kind of difficult. I found myself thinking that a couple receivers in this draft class could learn some footwork off of these kids... I did get a little time to start putting together my mock for this season, and I have a couple things in there that I'm not seeing a lot of chatter about, so I'll be interested in getting some feedback.
Joe and RT will be putting together their contest based on this mock, and there will be a couple other contests to go with it, so I hope to see everyone jump in.
@Campbell thanks again for hosting the site for us to come back. It's always good to see people come back even when they disappear for more than a season. They know where to find us. Also did you make your final signings?
@Campbell Thanks for handling the Giants. Not going to lie I saw a trade back in the first and thought I was going to hate it but your draft came together really well.
Indianapolis Colts Quick hits: I wanted to stay pretty flexible with the Colts. Started with 7 picks. Was hoping to add a TE who can become a pass game weapon, one D-lineman (Edge or DT), and one DB who could make an impact. After that just wanted good players, but had OL/DB/WLB as positions to keep my eye out for. 1.14 Mykel Williams / EDGE - Georgia 2.45 Mason Taylor / TE - LSU 3.80 Andrew Mukuba / S - Texas 4.117 Smael Mondon Jr. / LB - Georgia 5.151 Jamaree Caldwell / DT - Oregon 6.202 Kalel Mullings / RB - Michigan 7.232 Jabbar Muhammad / CB - Oregon UDFA Ben Sauls / PK - Pittsburgh UDFA Bryce Cabeldue / OL - Kansas + 2026 6th(LAR) Pretty Happy with how it all came together. Mykel is another high upside Edge to put alongside Latu, Paye, and Ebukam. Should be an elite level run defender even if he never hits his ceiling as a pass-rusher. Traits are very good, and he's only 20. Taylor should give us a balanced Y-Tight End with amazing hands who can threaten the seams. Mukuba is a great developmental third safety who can sit behind Nick Cross and Bynum. Will probably see some deep middle and slot snaps early enough. Smael should give some early contributions on special teams and in sub-packages as a decent pass defending LB. He's a feisty, experienced kid. Caldwell, Mullings, and Muhammad will all get plenty of time to learn behind veterans, and I believe all can give us contributions down the raod. I'm actually really high on Muhammad and was feeling anxious waiting through the whole 7th. He's the kind of Nickel Lou Anarumo likes to have, quick and fearless. Sauls will compete in camp for the starting PK job, while Cabeldue can try and steal the last OL spot on the 55 in camp. Added an extra 2026 6th. Never hurts. Pretty defense heavy haul. But I feel Ballard has given this offense a ton of weapons. All the pieces are there. Just need the young signal-caller to put it all together. The defense needed some young blood imo. The current makeup on D is a combination of guys who aren't quite there, and studs who are over 30. If we wait longer to find the next man up, it could get ugly.
