How Combine Changed Chiefs’ Draft Board

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Chiefs finally have deep-pocket draft capital, with the No. 9 overall selection in April’s draft. But short arms could keep them from selecting Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain.

In an interesting development at this week’s combine, Bain’s 30 and 7/8-inch arm length became a narrative. And because of it, there’s good reason for the Chiefs to change their draft board.

Matt Miller (@NFLDraftScout) has revealed his Top 3 Draft Fits for the #Chiefs:

• Arvell Reese — LB/DE (Ohio State)
• David Bailey — DE (Texas Tech)
• Rueben Bain Jr — DE (Miami)
— Arrowhead Corner (@ArrowheadCorner) February 28, 2026

“Some teams,” ESPN draft expert Matt Miller said this week, “will knock a player with sub-32-inch arms along the defensive line, even if that player had 71 pressures and 9½ sacks like Bain did last season. His weight will also be of interest.”

His weight on Thursday came in at 264 pounds, six below his listed number on the Hurricanes’ official roster in 2025. He’s also the epitome of why NFL scouts take their own measurements because Bain came in an inch shorter than Miami’s listing, at 6-foot-2. The Hurricanes had him at 6-3 and 270.

rueben bai — Jan 8, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Miami Hurricanes defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr. (4) against the Mississippi Rebels during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Why arm length should change Chiefs' draft board

But the arm length usually isn’t something scouts measure until the combine, and for Bain, that should be enough to cause the Chiefs to change their grade.

Bain wasn’t alone on Thursday. He joined Cashius Howell (30¼-inch arms) from Texas A&M with unusually short arms. That commonality is expected to make them the edge rushers with the two shortest arm lengths drafted in the first round since 1999, according to Miller.

Not good for the Chiefs, especially since only a year ago they drafted Ashton Gillotte, whose arms measured at 31 and 7/8 inches at the 2025 combine. Gillotte, taken in the third round (66th overall), became the highest-drafted edge rusher with arms below 32 inches.

That’s why it’s no surprise that in both 2023 and 2024, the 32-inch threshold kept every edge rusher from getting drafted. Let that sink in for a second: No edge rushers who measured below 32 inches entered the league as a draft pick.

Will Campbell in 2025

A year ago at the combine, Will Campbell’s arms measured at 32 and 5/8 inches. The Patriots weren’t worried, drafting him fourth overall. After Campbell allowed an alarming 14 pressures in three New England postseason games, including the Super Bowl loss to Seattle, the Patriots maintained that those numbers were due to Campbell’s knee injury, not his short arms.

But on the other side of the line of scrimmage, shorter arms are arguably more detrimental for edge rushers. Consider that the best of the best in the NFL, Cleveland’s Myles Garrett, has 35-inch arms. In fact, among the NFL’s top 10 players in sacks last season, none had arms shorter than 32 inches. Aaron Donald was considered undersized when the Rams drafted him in 2014. Even before his Hall of Fame career, Donald’s arms were nearly two inches longer than Bain’s, at 32 and 5/8 inches.

Again, Bain’s arms came in at 30 and 7/8 inches on Thursday.

What’s difficult for the Chiefs is that Arvell Reese and David Bailey – widely considered the draft’s best two pass rushers -- are expected to be long gone by the time Kansas City is on the clock at No. 9.

“Every year when we were picking 31, 32,” general manager Brett Veach said Tuesday, “I'd always say, ‘Man, if we were just at 24, 25, we'd be exactly where we want to be.’ And now that we're at 9, I'm like, ‘Man, if we were just at 4 or 5, we'd be exactly where we want to be.’

“So, I think every GM kind of has that mindset where, unless you have the first pick, there's a certain element that you can't control. And you have to let the dominoes fall, if you will.”

mauigo — Jan 8, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Miami Hurricanes offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa (61) against the Mississippi Rebels during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Those dominoes may fall with not only Reese and Bailey off the board, but also Jeremiyah Love going before the Chiefs can draft. No wonder Kansas City invested a formal meeting with Bain's teammate, right tackle Francis Mauigoa.

And passing on Bain doesn’t mean the Chiefs can’t get great value later in the draft. The Chiefs are picking at No. 40, in addition to No. 9.

“I mean, we don't want to be picking at 9 every year,” Veach said, “but we're excited to add some young talent to this roster. And I think even more excitingly, those second, third rounds, where I felt like in years past, Day 1 came and went and we'd come in there and there'd be five or six players but you knew at 32 in Round 2, you wouldn't get them, either.

“So, it's not just the first round. I think we have an opportunity to really capitalize here and add a lot of talent throughout the course of the draft weekend.”

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