Tight end Travis Kelce didn’t return to the Chiefs with the hope of the team having another season like 2025 and he thinks this year’s draft class can help spark a quick turnaround in Kansas City.
Kelce said on his New Heights podcast that most clubs that land in the top 10 picks of the draft are “really not too good,” but he feels the Chiefs are an exception to that rule because of their history of success. He said he thinks the team’s first-round picks — cornerback Mansoor Delane and defensive tackle Peter Woods — can help right away and he seems particularly excited about what second-round edge rusher R Mason Thomas brings to the table.
“The guy is a f—king freak of nature in terms of athleticism and explosiveness,” Kelce said. “I can’t wait to see how this guy gets after the quarterback, man. It’s been kinda something that the Chiefs have been looking at to get better at. That’s getting after the QB and really putting quarterbacks under duress. Obviously, we’ve always had Chris Jones there, and George [Karlaftis] is a f—king workhorse. . . . I think this is going to be a game-changer at the edge position.”
Kelce won’t be on the field with Thomas or the two first-rounders, but he and the rest of the offense will find themselves in advantageous situations if the trio makes the kind of immediate impact he expects to see this fall.
The Chiefs opened up a spot on their 90-man roster on Wednesday.
The NFL’s daily transaction report shows that they waived running back ShunDerrick Powell. There was no corresponding addition, but it gives the Chiefs another spot to use on an undrafted rookie or other player that catches their eye.
Powell signed a futures contract in January. He signed with the Eagles after going undrafted last year, but did not make the team out of camp.
Kenneth Walker, Brashard Smith, Emari Demercado, and fifth-round pick Emmett Johnson are on the running back depth chart. A report indicated the team is also going to sign E.J. Smith, who went undrafted and is the son of Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith.
The transaction report also shows that the Chiefs released an international player exemption for offensive lineman Chukwuebuka Godrick. He played four games and made three starts last season. Godrick will not count against the 90-man limit this offseason.
A year ago, LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was widely regarded as a first-round draft prospect. So it’s understandable if he was disappointed not to hear his name called until late in the seventh round, when the Chiefs took him with the 249th overall pick.
But when Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach called Nussmeier to let him know where his NFL home would be, Veach told him there’s no better place a quarterback can go than Kansas City.
“I know it’s been a long day, but just know that you’re going to head to the best quarterback room in the NFL here,” Veach told Nussmeier, in video released by the Chiefs. “We’re going to turn this pick in now and make you the newest member of the Kansas City Chiefs.”
Nussmeier will get to work alongside Patrick Mahomes, as well as Chiefs backup quarterback Justin Fields, and get coached by Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. Bieniemy was UCLA’s offensive coordinator in 2024, when Nussmeier led LSU to a 34-17 win over UCLA by throwing for 352 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
“Last time I saw you, I was on the opposite sideline at UCLA,” Bieniemy told Nussmeier. “You had a pretty good game against us. I’m very proud of you and looking forward to having this opportunity to work with you.”
Nussmeier knows he’s not going to a place where he’ll have any opportunity to compete for the starting job, but he’s going to a quarterback room where he’ll learn a lot, and hope to eventually show, somewhere, that he’s capable of being the NFL starting quarterback he was projected as being early in his career at LSU.
Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier waited longer than he would have liked to be drafted this weekend, but he’s happy about where he landed.
The Chiefs picked Nussmeier in the seventh round on Saturday and the former LSU starter said that his mindset as he dropped down the board was that “it’s not when, it’s where.” He said that he thinks the presence of head coach Andy Reid and starter Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City will provide him with a chance to grow.
“It’s a great opportunity for me to learn,” Nussmeier said, via Nate Taylor of ESPN.com. “I’m just grateful that I have this opportunity. I can only imagine. I’m so excited to be in a room with those guys, coach Reid and his unbelievable offensive mind and sitting behind Patrick and steal some things from him and see the game through his eyes. It’s going to be an unbelievable experience for me.”
Injuries limited Nussmeier to nine games last season and they contributed to a drop in production along with his drop in the draft. He’ll have a chance to reverse that trajectory if he can impress Reid and the rest of the staff once he’s on the field with the Chiefs.
Texas A&M running back E.J. Smith participated in Dallas Day, the Cowboys’ annual workout day for local prospects. That gave Cowboys fans hope that Smith might sign with the hometown team and follow in the footsteps of his father.
But as he did in choosing his college, E.J. Smith is his own man.
After going undrafted, the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher, is signing with the Chiefs.
E.J. Smith announced his decision on Instagram.
“Excited to officially sign with the Kansas City Chiefs as a free agent,” Smith wrote. “Nothing is given. Everything is earned. I’m ready to work, learn, and prove myself every single day. Thank you to my family, coaches, teammates, and everyone who believed in me and pushed me to this moment. The journey hasn’t been easy, but every challenge prepared me for this next step. Grateful is an understatement. All glory to God for this opportunity. Let’s get it Chiefs Kingdom.”
Smith spent four seasons at Stanford and two at Texas A&M.
He had only 44 carries for 205 yards and four touchdowns and four catches for 18 yards in 2025, but had two memorable plays for the Aggies. Smith picked up a first down on fourth-and-1 at his own 34-yard line with 10 minutes left in a close game with Arkansas, getting to the stick despite tight end Micah Riley running into him in the backfield. In a game against UTSA, Smith made three blocks on K.C. Concepcion’s 80-yard punt return.
He finished his career with 207 carries for 969 yards and nine touchdowns and added 470 receiving yards and a touchdown.
