NFL Mock Draft: Chiefs Beef Up Offensive Line

The Kansas City Chiefs have an opportunity to fill their biggest weakness in the draft. This mock draft has them selecting Josh Conerly Jr.

Oregon offensive linemen Nishad Strother, center, and Josh Conerly Jr., right, engage Maryland defensive lineman Jordan Phillips as the Oregon Ducks host the Maryland Terrapins at Autzen Stadium Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024 in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Kansas City Chiefs have one glaring hole heading into next season: their offensive line. Under Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs have been subject to two embarrassing Super Bowl losses, and both times, they can be attributed to poor offensive line play.

Mahomes and the rest of the offense tried their best, but it's hard to run a successful offense when he is given no time to read through his progressions and throw the ball in a clean pocket. They doubled down on their problem by trading away Joe Thuney.

To give them credit, they did go out in free agency to make some moves to mitigate that problem. They franchised tagged Trey Smith, an up-and-coming guard who was set to be a hot commodity in free agency, but they kept him on the team for another year.

They also signed Jaylon Moore, a guard from the San Francisco 49ers, who will be their starting left tackle next season after stepping up last year for San Francisco. The Chiefs got a good grade based on their free agency signings, but they can always do more to protect their franchise quarterback.

James Foster is an NFL analyst who works for The 33rd Team, and he recently published a mock draft post free agency signings. In his mock draft, he thinks the Chiefs should draft Josh Conerly Jr. with the 31st pick of the 2025 draft.

"Kansas City selects Josh Conerly Jr., which has become the “Free Space” of NFL mock drafts. Conerly Jr. is a left tackle with light feet to take mirror pass rushers on an island. While he was undersized early in his career, he bulked up to 313-pounds in 2024 and meets every threshold in terms of size, length, and athleticism", said Foster.

They're the second-to-last pick in the draft; it'll be hard to gauge who'll be available when they select. While they could go plenty of routes with their pick, including drafting a tight end or adding on their defense selecting Conerly Jr. is the safest pick they can make. The Chiefs want Mahomes to stay with them for his entire career; they need consistent offensive line play if they want that to happen.

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