The Chiefs picked 8 players last April and only one of them was what I would call a good player (Ryan Succop) based on how the players looked as rookies.  DE Tyson Jackson (1st round, #3 overall) out of LSU was supposed to help the pass rush of the Chiefs in 2009 but he didn’t.  Jackson played in all 16 games for the Chiefs last season and he made 38 tackles and defensed 2 passes but had zero sacks.  DT Alex Magee (3rd round, #67 overall) out of Purdue played a lot without doing much.  He played in 15 games in which he made 8 tackles and he had 2 sacks.  The Chiefs selected CB Donald Washington in the 4th round (#102 overall) out of Ohio State.  He played in 8 games and he made a whopping 5 tackles last season.  OT Colin Brown was selected in the 5th round (#139 overall) out of Missouri and he spent his rookie season on the Injured Reserve List.  WR Quinten Lawrence (6th round, #175 overall) out of McNeese State showed some potential.  Lawrence played in 6 games for the Chiefs last season and he carried the ball 2 times for 42 yards (21.0 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 9 yards.  Lawrence also returned 16 kickoffs for 317 yards (19.8 avg) last season for the Chiefs.  RB Javarris Williams (7th round, #212 overall) out of Tennessee State played in 4 games for the Chiefs last season and he carried the ball 6 times for 6 yards (1.0 ypc).  WR Jake O’Connell (7th round, #237 overall) out of Miami (Ohio) played in 4 games for the Chiefs last season and he caught 2 passes for 7 yards (3.5 avg).  Mr. Irrelevant in the NFL Draft was kicker Ryan Succop (7th round, #256 overall) out of South Carlina.  All he did last season was play in all 16 games for the Chiefs in which he nailed 25 of 29 field goals (86.2%) and all 29 of his extra point attempts good for 104 points.  Succop was the Chiefs’ best rookie last season and that is really saying something about how poor they drafted.

GRADE FOR 2009:  D-

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  D

Ryan Succop was “Mr. Irrelevant” in the NFL Draft last April as the Chiefs picked him in the 7th round, #256 overall out of South Carolina.  He has stepped right into the job for the Chiefs and he has been very effective.  Succop has made 9 of 11 field goals this season and he has made all 10 of his extra points.  This was a excellent pick for the Chiefs who find a starter with the last pick of the NFL Draft.

Ryan Succop was Mr. Irrelevant in the NFL Draft as he was the last pick out of South Carolina, but, it appears that he will be starting when the Chiefs open the season at kicker.  Succop has made all three of his field goal attempts this pre-season and both of his extra points.  This appears to have been a good draft pick by the Chiefs.

The Chiefs selected DE Tyson Jackson with the #3 pick in the first round.  He will be a starter from Day #1 for the Chiefs but he’s a run stuffing end.  He is huge at 6′4″, 295 pounds but he’s fast for his size running a 4.9 40.  Jackson played in 53 games (40 starts) in his 4-year career at LSU and he made 122 tackles, 27 tackles for a loss, 18.5 sacks, batted down 18 balls, forced 2 fumbles and recovered 2 fumbles.  While he might not get a ton of sacks, Jackson is a great run defender off the edge and that’s just what the doctor has ordered for the Chiefs’ defense.

The outgoing brain trust of the Chiefs left the new bunch with a lot of good players that they drafted last season.  It all started in the 1st round when the Chiefs drafted one player for each side of the line of scrimmage (DT Glenn Dorsey and OT Braden Albert).  Dorsey played in 16 games (all starts) for the Chiefs last season and he made 46 tackles, had 1 sack, forced a fumble and he defensed a pass.  Look for him to improve in 2009 for the Chiefs and be the impact player they thought he would be.  Branden Albert also moved right into the starting lineup for the Chiefs where he will stay a  long, long time.  He played in 15 games (all starts) for the Chiefs last season and he even made a tackle.  The Chiefs also found a pair of starting cornerbacks last April in Brandon Flowers (2nd round) and Brandon Carr (5th round).  Flowers played in 14 games (13 starts) for the Chiefs last season and he made 69 tackles, forced 1 fumble, defensed 13 passes and he had 2 interceptions (one that he returned for a TD).  The sky is the limit for him in the future as he was projected by many draft experts to be selected in the 1st round last April.  Brandon Carr started all 16 games last season for the Chiefs and he made 73 tackles, defensed 6 passes and picked off two passes.  In the 3rd round the Chiefs probably found Larry Johnson’s eventual replacement.  Charles played in all 16 games (2 starts) for the Chiefs last season and he carried the ball 67 times for 357 yards (5.3 ypc).  He also caught 27 passes for 272 yards (10.1 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Charles also helped out a little bit on special teams making 3 tackles and he returned 15 kickoffs for 321 yards (21.4 avg) last season.  The Chiefs drafted two TEs last season in 3rd rounder Brad Cottam and 7th rounder Michael Merritt.  Cottam played in all 16 games (7 starts) for the Chiefs last season and he caught 7 passes for 63 yards (9.0 avg).  He is a good run blocker but if the Chiefs ever think he will develop into the eventual replacement for Tony Gonzalez they are sadly mistaken.  Michael Merritt didn’t get into any games last season for the Chiefs.  The Chiefs like their other 3rd round pick (DaJuan Morgan) who played in 15 games (0 starts) last season and he made 23 tackles.  They think he could be a starter down the road as long as he shows steady improvement.  The Chiefs also drafted two WRs last season in Will Franklin (4th round) and Kevin Robinson (6th round).  Franklin played in 13 games (1 start) for the Chiefs last season and he caught 7 passes for 83 yards (11.9 avg).  He also returned 1 kickoff for 16 yards and he made 3 tackles.  Kevin Robinson didn’t catch any passes for the Chiefs despite playing in 8 games (0 starts) for them.  But, he did show some promise on special teams returning 19 kickoffs for 420 yards (22.1 avg) and 11 punts for 94 yards (8.5 avg).  6th rounder (OT) Barry Richardson played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Chiefs and he projects as a backup for them in the future.  DE Brian Johnston was selected in the 7th round by the Chiefs last season and he played in 9 games (0 starts) and made 3 tackles.

GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  A