Chiefs’ defensive buildup rolls on in NFL Draft with pick of Oregon DB in Round 4
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Chiefs selected Oregon cornerback Jadon Canady with the No. 109 overall pick.
- Canady projects as an NFL nickel corner and provides dependable special‑teams value.
- Canady had 39 tackles, six pass breakups, two interceptions and a forced fumble in 2025.
After three straight defensive picks to start the 2026 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs made a fourth.
With the No. 109 overall pick in Saturday’s fourth round, the Chiefs selected Oregon cornerback Jadon Canady. Kansas City used two of its first four picks on cornerbacks, beginning the draft by taking Mansoor Delane at No. 6 overall.
The draft concludes Saturday afternoon.
Canady, 22, most recently played for Oregon after stops at Tulane and Ole Miss. He is listed at 5-foot-10 and 181 pounds. “He’s an uber-competitive nickel corner,” Chiefs Western regional scout Greg Castillo said. “I think the most important thing is he also provides special teams value. This guy has been a productive gunner everywhere he’s been.
“So, just from a nickel standpoint, he’ll compete for that role. And then in addition to that, this guy’s a feisty competitor.”
Canady received the call from the Chiefs while surrounded by family at a restaurant in his hometown of Jacksonville, Florida.
“(It’s) life-changing, surreal,” he said during a Zoom call with local media. “As a kid, wanting to be in the NFL, wanting to play, get drafted, just getting that phone call, seeing my name called — just meant a lot to me and my family.”
After trading Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams and losing Jaylen Watson to the same team in free agency, cornerback projected as the Chiefs’ greatest need entering the draft. While Delane played most of his college snaps on the outside, Canady was the opposite, spending the majority of his snaps over the last two seasons in the slot.
Still, the Chiefs believe he has the potential to play all over the field.
“I think the beauty of it is he can do both effectively,” Castillo said. “I think part of it too is the football IQ portion of it, and he checks all the boxes when it comes to that. And the cool thing is he’s shown it.
“He’s shown it on tape, so you feel that much better about the overall vision. So nickel, yes, and I think he has some ability to play some safety too, and he is scrappy now, so he’ll throw his body around.”
As defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo figures out Canady’s role on defense, he also offers Kansas City special-teams value, a trait coordinator Dave Toub will appreciate after Joshua Williams’ offseason departure.
Castillo told reporters Canady has been a “productive gunner” at all three schools. “Throughout my career, I’ve had coaches who value that,” Canady said. “So if it’s gunner, if it’s hold-up, if it’s (kickoff returner), I take pride in it a lot.”
Canady said he spent an hour with Chiefs coaches on a Zoom call ahead of the draft. Castillo attended his pro day.
“The one thing I took away was just the competitive nature,” Castillo said. “He ran fast enough.”
Canady’s 40 time was reported to be 4.38, and though Castillo admitted he didn’t get that exact number, KC felt comfortable enough with the timing to draft him.
“He chose to do everything,” Castillo said. “You see a lot of these guys picking and choosing, and this guy came in with the mindset of, let me just compete today, and he showed up pretty well, even with the position drill stuff too, which I thought was one of the better things he did — the reactionary athleticism, closing speed, acceleration, all that fun stuff.”
In 15 appearances in 2025, Canady recorded 39 tackles, six passes defensed, two interceptions and a forced fumble. He now joins a group of Chiefs cornerbacks that includes Kristian Fulton, Nohl Williams, Delane and free-agent signees Kaiir Elam and Kader Kohou.
The last time Kansas City began its draft class with four defensive selections was 2018.
This story was originally published April 25, 2026 at 12:51 PM.
