Chiefs GM Brett Veach expects trades at NFL Draft. Will Kansas City participate?
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- Brett Veach said he expects “probably a lot of trades” on NFL Draft night.
- Kansas City made a trade involving a first-round pick in seven of the last 10 drafts.
- The Chiefs enter the draft with three top-40 picks and nine total selections to use.
Throughout the years, the first round of the NFL Draft has transformed from reading name cards in a hotel conference room to one of the most dramatic four-hour-long soap operas in sports. Trades on night one only add to the spectacle.
In the past five years, there have been at least six first-round trades on draft night. Last season, there were six trades, including the Kansas City Chiefs swapping picks with the Philadelphia Eagles and selecting Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons.
The most first-round trades in recent years came in the 2022 draft, which featured 13 draft-day trades. That 2022 draft class laid the foundation for the Chiefs’ back-to-back Super Bowl wins. KC traded up in the first round for Washington cornerback Trent McDuffie and also selected Purdue defensive end George Karlaftis.
KC also selected its “Fab Five” defensive back class, third-round linebacker Leo Chanel and seventh-round running back Isiah Pacheco, all important pieces of those runs.
Karlaftis is the only player from those 10 draft selections still with the team.
Four years later, KC has to replace holes that were partly filled because of that draft class. Wide receiver, offensive tackle, edge rusher and defensive back are all positions that could be selected with their three top-40 picks (9th, 29th and 40th overall).
Ahead of the draft, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach acknowledged that the team is evaluating several positions with its top picks, including tackle and receiver. He has plenty of options with the Chiefs having nine picks in the draft.
“I think having the picks and the amount that we do, it’ll give us a chance to navigate the board a little bit,” Veach told reporters Thursday.
Veach is going into his 10th year as GM and is known for his trading expertise. The Chiefs have made a trade involving a first-round pick in each of the last two drafts and in seven of the last 10. Those trades acquired players like pass rusher Frank Clark, offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr., linebacker Nick Bolton and McDuffie.
The Chiefs are usually tight-lipped about their plans, let alone who they like in the draft. But Veach gave a message to fans to be ready for some fireworks come Thursday.
“I think it should be an entertaining night, and probably a lot of trades,” Veach said. “When you don’t have, you know, two or three franchise quarterbacks and (Houston Texans edge rusher) Will Anderson or (Cleveland edge rusher) Myles Garrett, I think it does lend itself to open up to a lot of fun, a lot of excitement.
“So I think, from a fan’s perspective, they should have a lot of fun (this) Thursday.”
This story was originally published April 20, 2026 at 2:46 PM with the headline "Chiefs GM Brett Veach expects trades at NFL Draft. Will Kansas City participate?."
