Despite having just six total picks in the 2014 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs and general manager John Dorsey were able to get the most out of them.
Of the six picks, five of them are still on the roster and contributing.
2014 NFL Draft - Kansas City Chiefs
Round
Pick
Player
Pos
G
College/Univ
1
23
LB
45
3
87
DB
27
4
124
RB
34
5
163
QB
6
193
G
47
6
200
OL
30
Only quarterback Aaron Murray, who was selected in the fifth round (No. 163 overall) out of Georgia, is no longer on the team.
Overall, the Chiefs got 3,387 snaps played last year from the 2014 draft class.
There should also be no mistaking this fact—the Chiefs don't win the AFC West last year without the breakout season of Dee Ford, who finished with 10 sacks and helped carry the pass-rushing ability for the team with veteran Justin Houston missing significant time recovering from offseason knee surgery.
In comparing to the other first-round pass rushers selected that year, Ford holds up pretty well.
Pass Rushers Selected in First Round - 2014
Pick
Player
Team
Career Sacks
1
Jadeveon Clowney
Houston Texans
10.5
5
Khalil Mack
Oakland Raiders
30
9
Anthony Barr
Minnesota Vikings
9.5
23
Dee Ford
Kansas City Chiefs
15.5
26
Marcus Smith
Philadelphia Eagles
4
It's important to note that sacks are far from the end-all, be-all of whether or not a player has been successful, but it's interesting to compare across the players selected in the same draft.
While Gaines and Thomas have contributed on their respective sides of the ball as well, this particular class may be remembered most for Dorsey's ability to find two key members of the offensive line late in the draft in the sixth round.
Fulton and Duvernay-Tardif have combined to make 61 starts along the offensive line for the Chiefs over the past three years, and Fulton has started at all three interior positions—providing great versatility and depth for one of the most important positional groups on the team.
The last pick for the Chiefs in this draft was Duvernay-Tardif (No. 200 overall), who recently signed a multi-year contract extension to fortify his position as the starting right guard for the foreseeable future in Kansas City.
Looking back, it was a successful second draft for Dorsey in Kansas City and one that helped contribute to the franchise's first divisional title since 2010 last year.
