2026 Kansas City Chiefs in Three Players
The offseason is upon us. Let's take a look at all 32 teams.
The 16th edition of our offseason series is upon us!
Instead of reviewing all 32 drafts and adding casual commentary, I will be doing this instead.
We will go through every single team, in alphabetical order, and quickly discuss three players:
a favorite free agent signing*
a favorite draft pick
and a player already entrenched on the roster
Not necessarily the best, or the top, or the one's who will play the biggest role, just one of choice.
Onto the Kansas City Chiefs.
Free Agent Signing
RB Kenneth Walker
Walker was a 2nd round pick of the Seahawks in 2022 and is coming off of a legendary playoff run, where he totaled 313 rushing yards and 4 TDs on 4.8 ypc through just 3 games, en route to Super Bowl MVP.
The Chiefs signed him to a 3 year, $45m contract in free agency.
Here is a cut-up of the good from Walker's 2025.
I have had my critiques of Walker, and even after a ridiculously strong playoff run, they do still exist. However, you will find that his flaws are mostly irrelevant to Kansas City, simply because they are so desperate for explosive running back play.
The Chiefs have not been blessed with a good rushing attack over the last couple seasons. In 2025 it may have hit rock bottom, leading to the signing of Walker.
Kareem Hunt led with 611 yards on just 3.7 yards per carry. Isiah Pacheco added 462 yards in 3.9 ypc. Both are no longer with the team. QB Patrick Mahomes had 422 yards on 6.6 yards per carry, adding most of their explosive rushing value.
Here is a quick comparison of some Chiefs rushing stats in 2025 along with Walker's.
Chiefs Walker
EPA per rush: 0.00 -0.11
Yards per carry: 4.2 4.6
Yards after contact per carry: 2.73 3.3
Yards over expected per carry: 0.00 +0.2
Rate of rushes for 10+ yards: 10% 15%
EPA stands for expected points added. The reason KC is not bad in this category is because they convert the necessary downs to add to their "expected points." For example, Kareem Hunt consistently moved the chains on 3rd and short. Extending the drive, even on a two yard gain, adds to your EPA.
Walker, on the other hand, does not have this running mentality.
Kenneth Walker will bring a running style that Kansas City has not truly experienced since Kareem Hunt was a rookie.
The explosive running style that Walker possesses will bring an element to the Chiefs offense that has been lacking for at least 3 years now.
The positives around Walker are obvious just by watching his highlights.
He is incredibly explosive and has thick lower body that allows him to break tackles quite easily. It is incredibly difficult to bring down a man with his type of lower body strength, especially when they are moving at high speeds. Walker was 2nd in the NFL in runs of 15+ MPH.
Walker burns the angles on would-be tacklers when cutting back. When Walker decides to cut back, he more often than not wins. Because even when defenders are in the cut-back lane, they still often cheat over to be closer to the action. Walker makes them pay for those mistakes.
He's arguably the RB at cutting back in the NFL, simply because he's so explosive. But it's also because he does it the most.
Despite a viral, Le'Veon Bell esque, run at the end of the Super Bowl, Walker is one of the least patient backs in the NFL.
The explosive cut backs are cool, but there is a reason Walker's advanced numbers and efficiency have never been good. The east-west style of running has gotten him in trouble, because he prefers to try to bounce runs outside instead of taking the 2 free yards in front of him. Walker is overly eager to bounce runs.
Now, to have explosive runs, you need a guy who's eager to bounce. Maybe not as eager as Walker, but eager nonetheless.
While Walker will provide a necessary spark in this Kansas City offense, his running style will be quite a change to what the Chiefs have experienced in the last few seasons. It will be interesting to see how Walker changes the number in this Kansas City offense.
Also, who will be the 3rd down back? Because it certainly can not be Kenneth Walker.
Draftee
DE R Mason Thomas
Thomas was taken with the 40th pick of this years' draft by Kansas City.
He spent all four years at Oklahoma University, starting 21 games over his final two seasons, where he compiled 23 TFLs and 15.5 sacks.
Thomas missed a total of 10 games with injury at OU.
Here is a cut-up of Thomas' 2025 at OU, courtesy of @NewEraMiah on Twitter/X.
The Chiefs pass rush has been in trouble, especially this past season.
And that is what happens when you miss on your 2023 1st round pick and your 2025 2nd rounder tears his ACL.
They made a clear effort to rebuild the defensive line, and R Mason Thomas is a big part of that. He was the only notable end player that was added by Kansas City.
Thomas is not a typical DE on a defense called by DC Steve Spagnuolo. The Chiefs have seen larger guys at defensive end, closer to a 6'4, 260lb frame.
George Karlaftis is listed at 6'4, 263lbs. Charles Omenihu is 6'5, 280lbs. Felix Anudike-Uzomah is 6'4, 255lbs. 2025 3rd rounder Ashton Gillote is 6'3, 270lbs.
You get the picture. Stronger DEs who can hold up against the run in a blitz heavy defense.
R Mason Thomas is listed at 6'2, 241lbs.
That is 16th and 4th percentile for his position. His wingspan is 16th percentile, arm length 5th, and hand size 2nd percentile.
And it showed up in college. Thomas struggled to set the edge and defend the run in general. When the tackle is in control, Thomas became very easy to handle. He has a difficult time getting off blocks.
In case you are not getting it, Thomas is tiny for an edge player. And Spagnuolo likes the big boys.
But Kansas City drafted Thomas because he is a really great pass rusher.
Outside of Karlaftis, the Chiefs had no defensive ends that recorded 5 sacks, 40 pressures, or a pressure rate above 10%. Not one hit any of those numbers.
Kansas City was 19th in sack rate, 19th in pressure rate, and 3rd in blitz rate. A lot of blitzing and still no pressure.
With the new archetype of pass rusher, I would not be surprised to see a slightly different defense next season in KC. Or at least not as blitz heavy.
Thomas can struggle against longer OTs due to his lack of length, simply getting guided upfield, his pass rush is incredibly strong.
He is incredibly explosive, getting off the line and into his rush intensely. He has more than enough bend to survive as his size, really being able to turn the corner.
Thomas' athleticism allows him to be more than just an around the edge speed rusher. He can cross the tackles face and find his way into the gaps.
And, despite the size, Thomas has a really good speed to power move.
Thomas, while not excelling against the run, has great closing speed. This helps him land sacks, but also shows up in his pursuit speed of the ball carrier.
It will be interesting to see how big R Mason Thomas' role is in Spagnuolo's defense. Is the 40th overall pick just a rotational pass rusher, does he see a full-time role, and does his role impact the defensive play-calling?
Regardless, Thomas will be a nice spark for Kansas City's pass rush.
In-House Player
CB Nohl Williams
Williams was drafted with the 85th pick of the 2025 draft out of Cal and saw 5 starts as a rookie.
He finished the year with 4 straight starts and saw majority action in the final five. Williams played a decent role in an additional 5 games. He completed his rookie season with 48 tackles, 4 TFLs, and 7 PDs.
Here is a cut-up of the good from Williams' rookie season.
I really wanted to watch Williams because I liked what I saw last year. The film backed it up. Also, Williams name will appear in a future article.
Williams is a natural name to be drawn to, mostly because of who left the Chiefs in the offseason.
Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, both apart of Kansas City's 2022 draft class, are no longer apart of this secondary.
McDuffie had inside-out versatility, excelling in the slot but also giving the team rpes on the perimeter. Watson had slowly developed into a talented outside CB who was a full-time starter the past two seasons in KC.
The Chiefs revamped much of their secondary this offseason.
They drafted CB Mansoor Delane 6th overall and slot CB Jadon Canady in the 4th round. They also added slot CB Kader Kohou in free agency, the former Dolphin who had an immediate role in the NFL but missed 2025 due to a torn ACL. Former 1st rounder Kaiir Elam is in the building, along with former Chief L'Jarius Sneed.
These cornerbacks join Williams and veteran Kristian Fulton, who both played roles on the outside in 2025.
I just listed a lot of names.
I believe Nohl Williams has the starting job locked down over all of them, even Delane. He simply showed so much in his rookie year.
The former 3rd rounder has good size, at 6'1 200lbs, to survive against anyone in the NFL.
As I was watching, I did not expect his level of tackling and physicality in the run game. The level he performed at is uncommon for NFL CBs in general, let alone a rookie.
Williams has good recognition skills that help him get an extra step towards the ball carrier, or have an advantage on his blocker. He is often unaffected when blocked by receivers.
He even is a good tackler in general, with just a 7.7% missed tackle rate. He goes low in a safe, successful fashion.
His size allows him to matchup with bigger receives, even tight ends, on the perimeter with little issue.
But the best part about Williams' game is his coverage.
You can see his recognition and athleticism when sitting in zone on the sideline. He can fluidly bounce in between the deep out behind him and the checkdown in front of him.
He mirrors receivers incredibly well off the line of scrimmage.
He did not have an interception as a rookie, but broke up 7 passes. Williams has legit ball skills.
There really is not much to critique. His speed is not elite. If it's man coverage and he has to track a guy across the field, he probably won't get there. But every corner has that issue.
To see this level of play out of a rookie is more than impressive. I legitimately do not see a world where Nohl Williams does not continue to have success at the NFL level.
And it seems, pending the Mansoor Delane selection, that the Chiefs will not have a major issue on the perimeter of their defense in 2026, despite two major losses in the offseason.
Thanks for reading through our 16th edition of previewing all 32 teams in 3 players! We are halfway there, training camp is upon us, and the goal is still to be complete by August. Or at least prior to preseason.
Let me know who else on the Chiefs is worth monitoring this season, good or bad!
Stay tuned for more NFL and 49ers articles, news, and opinions!
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