On any given Sunday, champions can fall to underdogs. Variance can win the day. Upsets happen, but Week 16 wasn't as much of a shock as it was a sobering reality for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Patrick Mahomes' torn ACL will headline a lost season, an aberration punctuating a dynasty.
Kansas City is eliminated from playoff contention, and without Mahomes to compensate for others' flaws, the cracks in the foundation were obvious. A team that could never run the ball mustered 126 passing yards. The Chiefs lost by three possessions to one of the five worst teams in football.
The good news is that Mahomes will return, and Kansas City didn't trade its first-round pick. The Chiefs will have a chance to reload, and as the door shuts on the first half of Mahomes' career, he'll have a top-15 prospect joining him when he takes the field next.
Top prospects for Chiefs to target in 2026 NFL Draft
Jordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona State or Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State
I don't intend to argue that Mahomes isn't the best quarterback in football. But if one were, it probably starts by addressing the drop off in production since trading Tyreek Hill. Of course, the Super Bowls followed, but the best offenses of Mahomes' career came with an elite deep threat.
Xavier Worthy hasn't filled that gap.
Neither Tyson nor Tate has Hill's speed, but of the top three receivers in the class (joining Makai Lemon), they are best suited to make plays downfield. Tyson is a natural separator who can win on the boundary or in the slot, impacting every level of the field. While not a downfield specialist, Tyson would have a good chance at breaking Andy Reid's rookie-receiver "issues" while complementing Rashee Rice well.
Tate, meanwhile, has outlier-level hands and a knack for making catches downfield. His separation skills have improved in his platform season, and he's made a strong case to be WR1. While not necessarily winning with speed, Tate would give Mahomes a field stretcher who can consistently win above the rim and make plays in the red zone.
Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon
It's an affront to football that Travis Kelce might catch his final pass from somebody other than Mahomes. Nobody said this sport was fair. The writing is on the wall that Kelce is at least considering retirement.
Rice, in all his option-route glory, is the de facto Kelce replacement. Sadiq, though, would provide a versatile target with unique athleticism for a tight end. He was once slot-bound, but improvements as a blocker will earn him time closer to the offensive line, and there's a clear path to being a plus starter.
MORE: How Patrick Mahomes' injury handed Chiefs brutal 'wake-up call'
Kelce's absence will create a new position of need and change the outlook of this offense. Sadiq is a plug-and-play replacement who has run away with the TE1 title in 2025.
Peter Woods, DT, Clemson
Woods was the top player on my preseason board. While he isn't a lock to go quite as high as he was projected in the summer, Woods is still a slam-dunk top-15 pick.
If the Kelce conversation must be had, talking about Chris Jones is probably necessary, too. He can still take over games, but will enter his age-32 season coming off a campaign with four sacks through 15 games.
Adding Woods to the equation would give Kansas City a blue-chip prospect to hold down the next era of Chiefs defense. In the short term, he'd amplify Jones while winning against the run enough to stay on the field on all downs. Kansas City was average in both phases defensively and struggled to get home. Woods has all the ingredients to change that in 2026.
David Bailey, EDGE, Texas Tech
Bailey did everything necessary to join the EDGE1 conversation in 2025. Shifting his projection from Azeez Ojulari to a complete edge rusher with proven production against the run and pass is meaningful and should make him a fairly early Day 1 selection. Still, there are a handful of names that could push Bailey down the board.
If so, he'd be a viable candidate to complement George Karlaftis along the edge. Rushing the passer is incredibly important in a conference stocked with elite quarterbacks, and Bailey's blend of athleticism and technique has game-shifting potential.
Kansas City hasn't been able to get home with schemed-up blitzes, making it all the more important to get home with four rushers in 2026. Few, if any, prospects will help that cause like Bailey.
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