Projecting Chiefs' Week 1 Starters After NFL Draft (Surprises Included)

At the beginning of the offseason, it was clear that the Kansas City Chiefs could use an injection of talent. Free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft opened the door for general manager Brett Veach to add to his roster, with the latter event recently wrapping up.

There's no denying that Kansas City's 90-man offseason group is in a better place now. With that said, not every first-year player is guaranteed to play significant snaps or even make the team right out of the gate. Which ones could factor into the club's plans for 2026?

With the draft in the rearview mirror, let's take a crack at projecting the Chiefs' Week 1 starters on both sides of the ball.

Who Could Start on Offense for the Chiefs in 2026?

After a defense-heavy draft, there may not be many surprises when it comes to the Chiefs' starting lineup on offense. There are stars, breakout candidates and wily veterans alike in this group.

Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes

At the age of 30, Patrick Mahomes doesn't have anything left to prove. He's a three-time Super Bowl champion and Super Bowl MVP, a two-time NFL MVP and is conservatively a top-10 quarterback ever.

Still, it feels like 2026-27 could be a statement campaign of sorts for the all-world signal-caller.

Mahomes played in 14 games last season before suffering a torn ACL. In those outings, he amassed just 22 touchdowns and an 89.6 passer rating. By many accounts, it was a down year for someone many consider the best in the business.

Mahomes has hurdles to clear before being ready to suit up in Week 1. Until told otherwise, however, there's no reason to predict a Justin Fields cameo.

Running Back: Kenneth Walker III

The Chiefs knew they had to improve on their 2025-26 halfback duo of Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt. Enter Kenneth Walker, whose $28.7 million in fully guaranteed money signals a firm belief that he can transform the offense.

Walker enjoyed a breakout season last year, rushing for 1,027 yards and five touchdowns before going on to win his first championship. According to SumerSports, among running backs with 100-plus attempts, his 9.95% explosive run rate was fifth.

Walker is the reason why the Chiefs largely left the rest of their offense untouched this offseason. There's a lot riding on his availability and efficiency.

Wide Receiver: Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, Tyquan Thornton

With no injuries to recover from and no suspension coming down the pipeline, this could be a full season of Kansas City's realized vision for wideout Rashee Rice. It comes at a near-perfect time, too, as he's entering a contract year already.

Behind Rice, 2024 first-round pick Xavier Worthy has yet to reach his perceived potential. Shoulder and ankle injuries limited him a season ago, seeing him post just 532 yards and a score in 13 starts.

Thornton was re-signed earlier this year, although the jury is out on his real ceiling. The former second-round pick emerged as a big-play threat in 2025 but did so on high-difficulty and high-variance targets.

There's no immediate threat to take starting snaps from any of these three players.

Tight End: Travis Kelce

After a letdown 2024 season, future Hall of Fame man Travis Kelce rebounded this past campaign. His volume stats didn't show it (19 fewer catches and only 28 more yards), but on a per-snap basis, he was quite effective.

Kelce's 11.2 yards per reception marked his highest total since 2022, as did his 5.6 yards after catch per reception. Throw in the third-most total EPA among all tight ends on the year, and you get someone who turned back the clock just a bit.

Kelce can't be the focal point of an offense anymore, sure. But in what could be the final season of his illustrious career, rest assured knowing no one will start over him.

Offensive Line: Josh Simmons, Kingsley Suamataia, Creed Humphrey, Trey Smith, Jaylon Moore

It'd take a serious surprise or an unfortunate injury for any member of this starting five to hit the sideline before Week 1 rolls around.

2025 first-rounder Josh Simmons missed time due to a personal matter and an injury as a rookie, but when on the field, he flashed Pro Bowl upside. As it turns out, left-tackle-turned-left-guard Kingsley Suamataia panned out and gives K.C. an affordable and intriguing duo.

Center Creed Humphrey is no longer the highest-paid player at his position. With that said, he remains the best. According to Pro Football Focus, he earned the highest offense grade (88.8) for a center once again in 2025-26.

Right guard Trey Smith may not quite be worth what he's making, but he was also an unorthodox fit alongside now-former right tackle Jawaan Taylor. With Jaylon Moore stepping in for Taylor, perhaps things change. Moore is under contract for just this coming season.

Who Could Start on Defense for the Chiefs in 2026?

This is where some things could start to change. With Veach opening the 2026 NFL Draft with four consecutive defensive picks, it's only natural to wonder where the pieces fit immediately.

Defensive Line: George Karlaftis, Khyiris Tonga, Chris Jones, Ashton Gillotte

Two players here can have their names written in Sharpie. Defensive end George Karlaftis is as steady as they come as a supporting pass rusher to All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones. Neither of these weapons is ceding premium snaps.

It's the other two spots in the Chiefs' 4-3 alignment where it gets interesting.

First-round rookie Peter Woods could easily show that he's too talented to come off the bench. His upside is immense. With that said, offseason signing Khyiris Tonga is a reliable run defender and is making too much (three years, $21M) to be even more of a role player early on.

At the other edge rusher spot, second-rounder R Mason Thomas is a massive deviation from what defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is used to. For that reason — as well as many others — rising sophomore Ashton Gillotte gets the nod as a superior run defender with more experience.

Linebacker: Nick Bolton, Drue Tranquill, Cooper McDonald

Projecting the sub-package linebackers is easy. Nick Bolton is coming off a 154-tackle season in 2025, and veteran Drue Tranquill is a nice complement to him. The latter also took a pay cut during the offseason so he could come back for 2026. Both started all 17 games last year.

With Leo Chenal moving on to the Washington Commanders in free agency, that opens up a spot for a "starting" SAM linebacker role. Quotations are used because in the modern NFL, that player could log just 35-40% of snaps for Kansas City.

2025 draft pick Jeffrey Bassa makes sense as someone who could play a role in year No. 2, but he doesn't fit the profile for this gig. Instead, second-year man Cooper McDonald could be the winner. He's 6-foot-2, 235 pounds and is less of a WILL or MIKE than Bassa or Jack Cochrane.

Cornerback: Mansoor Delane, Kristian Fulton

It'd be a travesty if the Chiefs moved up in the first round for LSU's Mansoor Delane and didn't make him a starting cornerback initially. It's easy to put impressive 2025 third-round rookie Nohl Williams in the secondary opposite him, but this projection sides with Kristian Fulton.

Williams, a lengthy corner with impressive physicality and linear athleticism, very well could be the better player. Perhaps Spagnuolo and defensive backs coach Dave Merritt want to give him the nod instead of Fulton.

On the other hand, Fulton likely would've been parted with already if the team didn't intend to roster him. There are also 13 million reasons to put him on the field.

A nickel option wasn't listed here, but March signing Kader Kohou seems to be the early favorite. Fourth-round pick Jadon Canady has the skill set, albeit not the NFL-level experience.

Safety: Alohi Gilman, Chamarri Conner

Losing Bryan Cook to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Chiefs knew they needed a suitable replacement in the secondary. Alohi Gilman, inked to a multi-year deal, could become a Spagnuolo favorite early in his Kansas City tenure.

It's shocking just how quickly 2024 NFL Draft pick Jaden Hicks fell out of favor. Perhaps he experiences a third-year breakout, but it could be more likely that Chamarri Conner transitions back to a traditional safety role after being miscast as a nickel corner.

Chris Roland-Wallace is a fun depth piece, yet more of a "break glass in case of emergency" one.

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