Realistic Expectations for Every Chiefs Rookie From the 2026 NFL Draft Class Pt. 2: Offense
Kansas City bet on its veteran offensive weapons in April, but what can the Day 3 picks actually bring to the table in year one?
Last week, we discussed the Chiefs’ draft strategy of going heavy on defense, picking a defender with each of their first four picks. Those actions signaled that Kansas City is betting on the players it already has on the offensive side of the ball.
Head coach Andy Reid seems to believe that the running game, positional coaches, and injuries were the primary culprits behind the offense finishing 20th in yards and 21st in points per game.
In free agency, the only additions made to the offense were Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker and third-down back Emari Demercado. Outside of trading for quarterback Justin Fields, the only other additions made to Reid’s weaponry did not come until the fifth and seventh rounds of the NFL Draft.
It is hard to make an impact in a Reid offense in year one, let alone as a Day 3 pick, but let’s dive in to see what should be expected from this bunch.
Running Back, Emmett Johnson, Nebraska
As a running back, so long as you make the roster, you always have a chance to see the field and earn more playing time through your play. That will be true of the former Cornhusker, Emmett Johnson.
Sure, the Chiefs signed the prized free agent Walker, but with Walker’s injury history, Johnson will have more than enough opportunities to see the field, whether to spell Walker or to fill in for a week or two. The rookie will have a chance to earn running back two snaps, given that 2025 seventh-rounder Brashard Smith appears to be a return and offensive-niche specialist, and Demercado profiles as a third-down back.
Johnson may not have the breakaway speed that Walker does, but he has the wiggle to miss tackles and has proven to be a bellcow, leading the Big Ten in rushing with 1,451 yards. The redshirt junior also ran for 12 touchdowns to go along with 46 receptions and 370 receiving yards.
If he can get some of that production to translate, he could earn well over 100 carries and rush for 400-500 yards as a backup. The Chiefs traded up to get him, so it is not as if the value just fell in their lap. The KCSN Draft Guide had him slated as a third-round prospect that fit perfectly into the Chiefs’ zone-heavy scheme, which is why Kansas City moved up to get their guy in the fifth round.
Johnson made it clear early in rookie mini-camp that he intends to be a student of the game. The mental side should not be the reason he does not see the field.
“I feel great,” Johnson said of learning the playbook. “It’s obviously a lot of plays that happen really quickly, but I do a great job of studying, and at the end of the day, I’m playing in the NFL. I have no excuse for not knowing my assignment on the football field, so I take big pride in understanding what I have to do on the field to be successful.”
Reid, for his part, likes what he has seen and offered a notable comparison.
“First of all, he’s got a good feel for things, a smart, kind, good kid, he’s got that lateral quickness,” Reid told reporters. “We had LeSean McCoy here for a bit, and he has a little bit of that to him, where he can shift gears and still get himself up the field quickly.”
Intentional or not, that is flattering praise.
Expectation: Running back two fairly early in the season
Wide Receiver, Cyrus Allen, Cincinnati
Cyrus Allen was somewhat of a polarizing pick. He is being labeled as yet another smaller-body type who profiles as a slot-only option. He is set up to be judged unfairly because he is a fifth-round pick, and wide receiver is something much of Chiefs Kingdom wanted General Manager Brett Veach to address earlier in the draft.
As for the athletic profile, it is actually quite good. At his pro day, he was listed at 5-foot-11, 183 pounds, 18 pounds heavier than Xavier Worthy weighed at the 2024 NFL Combine, for example. He ran a 4.47 40-yard dash and displayed elite explosion, posting a broad jump of 11 feet, which ranked at the top of the 2026 draft class.
As for the slot-only profile, it appears to be true. In his breakout season with the Bearcats, where he hauled in 11 touchdowns, he lined up out wide just 20 times out of 278 pass snaps. This does limit his 2026 upside, given the presence of Rashee Rice. Not only that, but that is how Jalen Royals, the 2025 fourth-rounder, profiles as well. So there is competition here.
Having said all of that, he is also the only wide receiver on the Chiefs roster that you would deem a man-beater rather than primarily a zone-beater. According to the KCSN Draft Guide, he separates at all three levels of the field and is explosive off the line of scrimmage, showcasing that broad jump. His best shot at playing time is standing out throughout training camp and the preseason, in addition to Rice taking on more outside snaps.
Allen has shown early on that he is not content to be pigeonholed into one role. When asked about learning the playbook, he made a point of noting that he is absorbing everything, not just the slot assignments, which is also how Reid likes to operate.
“I’m learning everything, learning different positions, learning what everybody has,” Allen told reporters. “That’s how I like to learn, so it will probably be a little harder for me, but it’s good.”
Expectation: Starting special-teamer and role player by mid-to-late season
Quarterback, Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
Expectations should be extremely low on Garrett Nussmeier, at least in terms of production on Sundays, not only for now, but for the foreseeable future, given the presence of Patrick Mahomes.
That does not change the fact that this was a fun pick. Mahomes’ backups have included Chad Henne, Matt Moore, Blaine Gabbert, Carson Wentz, and Gardner Minshew. With Mahomes entering his 30s, he may now have a potential long-term backup in Nussmeier, who could fill in with real upside.
Like Johnson, Nussmeier was too good a value to pass up. In a weaker draft class, Veach opted to take a chance on a falling quarterback expected to go in the second or third round. The former four-star recruit had an injury-riddled 2025 season, but in his redshirt junior season, he produced over 4,000 yards and 29 touchdowns. He is known as a quarterback with a high IQ who is capable of making throws at all three levels of the field. Those are the marks of a good backup in the NFL.
As for 2026, Fields will surely be the quarterback two. The task for Nussmeier will be to show enough throughout training camp and the preseason to warrant Veach carrying a third quarterback on the roster. Kansas City has not done so since the 2023 season, when they carried Mahomes, Gabbert, and Shane Buechele.
For now, Nussmeier is focused on soaking up everything around him, starting at the top.
“Obviously, there’s so many things,” Nussmeier said of working with Head Coach Andy Reid. “Coach Reid is such a legendary coach and such a great football coach. Just trying to be a sponge around him. Anything I can take from him, that’s what I’m looking to do.”
Expectation: Third-string quarterback throughout the entire 2026 season