Will Chiefs draft receiver or edge 1st? In final mock with KC on clock, it’s ...
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- In The Star’s Mock 6.0, the Chiefs’ No. 9 pick is Ohio State WR Carnell Tate.
- Zion Young from Missouri is a repeat selection carried over from Mock 1.0.
- Beat writers Pete Sweeney & Blair Kerkhoff reuse players from prior versions in Mock 6.0.
This week’s arrival of the 2026 NFL Draft closes the curtain on another operation ... mock drafts.
But not before The Star takes a sixth and final stab at predicting the Chiefs’ selections over the three-day draft in Pittsburgh, which begins Thursday.
For this exercise, beat writers Pete Sweeney and Blair Kerkhoff were allowed to select players they’ve taken in previous mock drafts, making this their final best guess.
It wasn’t easy. Assuming the Chiefs hold on to their No. 9 selection, the choice came down to a wide receiver or defensive end.
“Let’s come out with a good football player, wherever it might be,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said earlier this week.
In The Star’s Mock 6.0, we went with Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate over Miami edge Rueben Bain Jr.
Pick No. 29 was a repeat selection, too. In our first mock, edge rusher Zion Young from Missouri got the call. He does here, as well.
Other holdover selections in later rounds: San Diego State cornerback Chris Johnson, Texas A&M tackle Dametrious Crownover and Notre Dame safety Jalen Stroman.
After that, the selections are unique to this draft. Here are our choices in The Star’s final mock draft of the 2026 pre-draft cycle:
Round 1, Pick No. 9: Ohio State receiver Carnell Tate
Mock draft 1.0: LSU CB Mansoor Delane
Mock draft 2.0: Miami edge Rueben Bain Jr.
Mock draft 3.0: Ohio State WR Carnell Tate.
Mock draft 4.0: Jordyn Tyson WR Arizona State
Mock draft 5.0 (No. 13, in trade with Rams): Kenyon Sadiq TE Oregon
Round 1, Pick No. 29: Missouri edge Zion Young
Mock draft 1.0: Missouri edge Zion Young
Mock draft 2:0: Tennessee CB Colton Hood
Mock draft 3.0: Clemson edge TJ Parker
Mock draft 4.0: Avieon Terrell CB Clemson
Mock draft 5.0 (No. 26, in trade with Bills): Auburn edge Keldric Faulk
Round 2, Pick No. 40: San Diego State cornerback Chris Johnson
Mock draft 1.0: Washington WR Denzel Boston
Mock draft 2.0: Tennessee WR Chris Brazzell II
Mock draft 3.0: South Carolina CB Brandon Cisse
Mock draft 4.0: UCF edge Malachi Lawrence
Mock draft 5.0: San Diego State CB Chris Johnson
Round 3, Pick No. 74: Texas A&M tackle Dametrius Crownover
Mock draft 1.0: Georgia CB Daylen Everette
Mock draft 2.0: Ohio State TE Max Klare
Mock draft 3.0: Oklahoma DT Gracen Halton
Mock draft 4.0: Texas Tech DT Lee Hunter
Mock draft 5.0: Indiana WR Elijah Sarratt
Round 4, Pick No. 109: Ole Miss defensive tackle Zxavian Harris
Mock draft 1.0: Baylor TE Michael Trigg
Mock draft 2.0: Oregon LB Bryce Boettcher
Mock draft 3.0: Texas A&M T Dametrious Crownover
Mock draft 4.0: Stanford TE Sam Roush
Mock draft 5.0 (No. 93 in trade with Rams): Iowa State DE Domonique Orange
Round 5, Pick No 148: Texas A&M tight end Nate Boekircher
Mock draft 1.0: Wake Forest RB Demond Claiborne
Mock draft 2.0: Florida T Austin Barber
Mock draft 3.0: Kansas State S VJ Payne
Mock draft 4.0: Texas A&M RB Le’Veon Moss
Mock draft 5.0: Illinois T JC Davis
Round 5, Pick No. 169: Arkansas cornerback Julian Neal
Mock draft 1.0: Miami S Jakobe Thomas
Mock draft 2.0: North Carolina CB Thaddeus Dixon
Mock draft 3.0: Indiana RB Kaelon Black
Mock draft 4.0: Stephen F. Austin CB Charles Demmings
Mock draft 5.0: Arizona State LB Keyshuan Elliott
Round 5, Pick No. 176: Notre Dame safety Jalen Stroman
Mock draft 1.0: Penn State T Drew Shelton
Mock draft 2.0: Notre Dame S Jalen Stroman
Mock draft 3.0: LSU LB Harold Perkins Jr.
Mock draft 4.0: Penn State T Nolan Rucci
Mock draft 5.0: Oregon CB Jadon Canady
Round 6, Pick No. 210: UTSA running back Robert Henry Jr.
Mock draft 1.0: Georgia Tech WR Eric Rivers
Mock draft 2.0: John Carroll WR Tyren Montgomery
Mock draft 3.0: Navy WR Eli Heidenreich
Mock draft 4.0: Texas A&M LB Taurean York.
Mock draft 5.0: Virginia RB J’Mari Taylor
