Arrowhead Report

Chiefs Trade Up to Select Tight End Noah Gray At No. 162 Overall in the 2021 NFL Draft

With the 162nd pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs selected Duke tight end Noah Gray.

Tucker D. Franklin

With the 162nd pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs selected Duke tight end Noah Gray.

Kansas City gave up picks No. 175 and 207 to trade up with the Jets. In return, the Chiefs got pick No. 162 and No. 226.

Scouting Report

The NFL Draft Bible on Sports Illustrated took a look at Gray before the draft kicked off. Here's what they had to say about Gray.

Wearing a variety of hats for the Duke football team, tight end Noah Gray is the type of flexible athlete who can cause a variety of mismatches. Some of his best reps come from the H back position where he is given a free release to attack second level defenders, causing a ton of mismatches. Gray is a very smooth athlete who is extremely flexible for the position. This allows him to run a varied route tree with high success. He also offers enough juice to threaten the seam with some regularity. In the run game, his best reps come from a detached position, especially on cross zone reps, taking on the role of a glorified fullback. Gray is an underdeveloped move piece who lacks the physical profile to play in line on a high volume of reps. There needs to be an increased amount of explosive plays for a player of his profile. There is a clear path to playing time on the next level. With Gray’s combination of smoothness, flexibility and versatility, he should warrant heavy volume as a secondary pass receiver from the tight end position.

How Does Noah Gray Fit With the Chiefs?

Arrowhead Report's Jordan Foote broke down Gray's game and assessed what his role will be in Kansas City.

Noah Gray is undersized, but he projects as a nice move TE for the Chiefs and certainly served as upgraded depth for the position. This is about where the Chiefs should be taking a tight end, and this investment is a solid one. 

Early Takeaways

Brett Veach finally admitted that the Chiefs needed to address the second-string tight end for the first time earlier this offseason, and they've done some significant work at making it better. Kansas City signed Blake Bell to a one-year contract and the pick of Gray hopefully solidifies that for the long term. Gray is undersized but a good athlete. He also seems to catch everything. Having a reliable second target that can also be a plus blocker is an important upgrade at TE2.

Read More: Chiefs Select Joshua Kaindoh At No. 144 Overall in the 2021 NFL Draft

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Tucker D. Franklin
TUCKER D. FRANKLIN

Tucker D. Franklin is an alumnus of Northwest Missouri State University, majoring in sports media and graduating in 2019. Tucker was previously the sports editor for The Maryville Forum and is now the editor-in-chief of Inside the Royals as well as the deputy editor for Arrowhead Report on SI.com and the host of the Roughing the Kicker Chiefs podcast. Follow Tucker on Twitter @tuckerdfranklin.

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