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Two days’ worth of activity had come to an end for the Chiefs on Sunday, leaving them a markedly different team from the one that entered draft weekend.
Herm Edwards paused to consider exactly how different. They no longer have Jared Allen, their best defensive player, but they selected 12 other players and will add as many as 10 undrafted free agents in the coming days.
Even that might not be enough to reverse the direction of a franchise that lost nine straight games last year and finished a dismal 4-12. But Edwards is delighted to be able to try.
“It’s great energy right now,” he said. “We’ve got to use that to our advantage. That’s good for us. That’s the direction we’re headed in.”
The Chiefs finished their draft by selecting nine players in the final five rounds Sunday. They won’t provide Edwards, who wanted at least six rookie starters from this year’s crop, that kind of haul he wanted.
The only likely rookie starters in the Sept. 7 season opener against the Patriots in New England are the ones the Chiefs selected on Saturday: LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey and Virginia offensive lineman Branden Albert in the first round and Virginia Tech cornerback Brandon Flowers in the second.
They still are expecting big contributions from their three third-round draft picks. The first was Texas running back Jamaal Charles. The Chiefs already have Larry Johnson and Kolby Smith, but Edwards indicated that the speedy Charles would have a role as both a ball carrier and a receiver out of the backfield.
“He’s a change-of-pace kind of guy,” Edwards said. “He has tremendous speed. He makes big plays and has good hands, can catch the ball. He’s kind of a well-rounded guy. Is he a 25-carry guy? Probably not, but we’re not going to ask him to do that. We’re going to have a role for him. Last year, (two) of our backs got hurt. You’ve got to look at that, too.”
The Chiefs are hopeful the second of their third-rounders, Tennessee tight end Brad Cottam, will be the blocking tight end the Chiefs relinquished when they released veteran Jason Dunn.
Eventually, Cottam could be the replacement for Tony Gonzalez.
“He’s a blocking tight end, and that’s why we drafted him,” vice president of player personnel Bill Kuharich said. “We have our receiving tight end. This guy is a very good blocker.
“He’s got Jason Dunn-esque qualities.”
The last of the third-round picks, safety DaJuan Morgan, will play on special teams after excelling in that area in college at North Carolina State.
Beyond that, the rest of the Chiefs’ draft picks are developmental players. Fourth-round pick Will Franklin of Missouri will have the chance to earn some playing time because the Chiefs are so thin at wide receiver.
Sixth-round pick Kevin Robinson of Utah State could wind up as the kickoff and punt returner. Robinson last season averaged 29.3 yards and scored three touchdowns while returning kickoffs while averaging 18.9 yards and scoring one touchdown while returning punts.
“We just felt those are the positions we needed to address, and we addressed them,” Edwards said. “Now the competition will begin.
“You never get every player you want at every position. But I thought our first two picks started off a good roll for us along with our second-round pick.”
While the Chiefs selected Franklin and Robinson, who also plays wide receiver, they are without a proven receiver other than Dwayne Bowe, so they may have to acquire another receiver before the start of training camp.
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