Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs are looking to return to championship form for the 2026 NFL season. Kansas City started strong last year, sitting at 5-3 around the midway point of the season. The Chiefs ended the season with a six-game losing streak, culminating in a 6-11 finish.
The Chiefs lost more than just regular-season games last year when superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a torn ACL in a Week 15, 16-13 loss against the Los Angeles Chargers. Mahomes underwent successful surgery on Dec. 15 by Dr. Dan Cooper in Dallas, Texas, and the team is hoping for his return by Week 1 of 2026.
Denny Medley-Imagn Images
One saving grace of the disastrous 2025 season for the Chiefs is their positioning in the 2026 NFL Draft. Nate Tice and Charles McDonald, both NFL writers for Yahoo Sports, collaborated on their final 2026 NFL mock draft. Tice handled the even-numbered picks, while McDonald selected the odd-numbered picks. For the Arizona Cardinals’ selection at No. 3 overall, McDonald predicts Kansas City will trade up with Arizona to select linebacker Arvell Reese from Ohio State University.
Arvell Reese was a standout linebacker for Ryan Day and the Buckeyes. A member of the 2024 championship team, Reese had a fantastic junior season in Columbus, registering 69 total tackles to go along with 6.5 sacks. The Glenville High School graduate was selected as the Big Ten Linebacker of the Year in 2025 and was named a consensus All-American.
"We’re sending the ninth and 40th picks to Arizona for this one," McDonald wrote. "And the Chiefs might need a little more to sweeten the pot for a move up like this. But the Cardinals (and Titans after them) feel like the pivot points of this year’s draft. The Cardinals could just sit and take whomever they want, or move back some to bet they can snag their preferred offensive lineman, all while getting more to work with on Day 2, the sweet spot of this year’s draft."
"A trade up makes sense for the Chiefs as they haven’t held a top-10 pick in the draft since they moved up for Patrick Mahomes in 2017," McDonald continues. "And you know what’s cooler than a top-10 pick? A top-three pick. I consider Reese the best non-quarterback in this year’s draft, and this ability to impact the game, both presently and what he can become in the future, on the line of scrimmage or from off-ball spots makes him an incredible fit for Steve Spagnuolo’s Bolo punch defense, all while keeping the 29th pick, too."
The first round of the 2026 NFL Draft will begin on April 23 at 8:00 p.m. ET in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
