The Kansas City Chiefs received a C+ plus on ESPN’s 2026 offseason report card.
NFL analytics writer Seth Walder assessed each NFL team’s decision making — which included signings, trades, releases, quality of contracts handed out, etc.
The Chiefs’ middling grade is a product of Walder’s mixed reviews on the moves they made. Like many other analysts are doing, he focused heavily on the turnover in the cornerback room. That featured both his favorite, and least favorite, decision that Kansas City made during the offseason.
Kansas City Chiefs’ 2026 Report Card Grade Takes Hit Due to Draft Selection of CB Mansoor Delane
GettyChiefs CB Mansoor Delane
Walder’s favorite move the Chiefs made during the offseason was trading cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams, as he admired the huge haul of draft picks they received in return for him.
“As much as it stung to lose McDuffie, it was worth it. The Rams were surrendering more than a first-round pick’s worth of value for the right to pay McDuffie a market rate. The Chiefs get the benefit of the surplus value from the draft capital and the money saved from not paying McDuffie.”
However, he wasn’t a fan of the capitol they had to surrender to move up to No. 5 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft to select Delane.
“The Chiefs traded picks Nos. 9, 74 and 148 for No. 6 to select Delane. He was the best cornerback in the draft, but considering the Chiefs’ prowess in developing corners, dealing to move higher in the top 10 to select one seems like bad value. There was some probability that Delane could have fallen to No. 9, too.”
It’s probably safe to say that the Chiefs felt pressure to nail their top 10 draft pick, as it will likely be one of the very few — if only — times they own that high of a selection while Patrick Mahomes is their quarterback. Delane was arguably the safest player in the draft to take, and he plays a premium position.
Other Takeaways From Chiefs’ Offseason Report Card
GettyChiefs RB Kenneth Walker III
Walder mostly approved Kansas City’s prize free agent signing of running back Kenneth Walker III, but did have some minor concerns about the amount of money it took to land him.
“I can’t endorse spending real money at running back, especially for a player who hasn’t shown special receiving ability in his NFL career, but Walker will be an upgrade to the Chiefs’ running game. It was also better to sign Walker than use one of their first-round picks (they also selected defensive tackle Peter Woods at pick No. 29) on a running back.”
Walker isn’t even in the top five of highest paid NFL running backs, so that’s an odd criticism. The Chiefs haven’t had a legitimate rushing attack in years, so it was beyond time to fix that issue.
Walder also isn’t sold of the cast of pass catchers Mahomes has to work with, which is certainly valid. Finally, the Chiefs’ decision to trade for Justin Fields to be their new backup QB was called into question.
“With Mahomes’ status for the start of the season not guaranteed, the Chiefs traded a future sixth-round pick to the Jets for Justin Fields, who took a pay cut to make the deal happen. It was a subpar choice. Fields played poorly in New York last season, and backup quarterback is too important a job for the Chiefs to be risky with, especially this season. Signing Marcus Mariota, who went back to Washington on a one-year, $7 million deal, would have been a better option.”
Fields has definitely had his struggles, but he’s never had a QB guru coach like Andy Reid. Fields has a live arm and is capable of making impressive throws. He could also serve a purpose as a rushing threat, even when Mahomes is healthy. While Mariota would have been a nice option, there’s no guarantee that K.C. could have landed him.
Chiefs’ 2026 Offseason Report Card Hindered by 1 Major Criticism