Did Chiefs Steal the Draft's Top Cornerback in Marcus Peters?

The Kansas City Chiefs were not the first team to select a cornerback in the opening round of the 2015 NFL draft, but it's quite possible the club still drafted the best player at the position with the No. 18 overall pick. 

As many predicted, Michigan State's Trae Waynes became the first corner off the board when the Minnesota Vikings took him at No. 11. Seven slots later, the Chiefs all but stole a potential top-10 talent in Marcus Peters—the Washington product with red flags off the field but plenty of promise on it. 

The Peters pick feels a little bit like a decision the Baltimore Ravens made four years ago. 

Off-the-field concerns helped drop Colorado cornerback Jimmy Smith deep into the first round of the 2011 draft. The Ravens were patiently waiting at No. 27 overall, pouncing on the talent despite the worries away from football. Smith has been a model citizen since, while also developing into one of the league's young stars at cornerback. Baltimore rewarded Smith with a contract extension this offseason. 

The Chiefs will likely feel they've unearthed a similar bargain. 

Peters is no angel—he has documented issues after being dismissed from the Washington program last season—but the talent he possesses at a premium position is undeniable. 

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller ranked Peters as his No. 1 cornerback and a top-15-overall player. 

"Marcus Peters looks like a pro, moves like a pro and plays like a pro," Miller wrote. "He's going to be an impact player early as a pro."

Miller went as far as to say Peters has the natural talent to become a top-five NFL cornerback. Such high praise is typically reserved for a player pegged for a high draft slot. Kansas City took Peters in the second half of the first round. 

The Chiefs will now plan on starting him opposite Sean Smith, creating a potentially smothering cornerback duo in a league dominated by the pass. With Peyton Manning, Philip Rivers and an emerging Derek Carr operating inside the division, the Chiefs have now properly armed themselves with secondary defense. 

Stephen Lam/Getty Images

	G	Tackles/For Loss	INT	PD	FF
2012	13	44/2.0	3	11	0
2013	13	55/3.5	5	9	1
2014	8	30/4.0	3	7	0

Over just 27 collegiate starts, Peters delivered 11 interceptions and 35 passes defended. He played in just eight games as a junior before head coach Chris Petersen kicked him out of the program for repeated run-ins with the coaching staff. 

Standing 6'0" and weighing almost 200 pounds, Peters' strength on the field is in pressing receivers at the line of scrimmage. 

"Competes hard out of press-man coverage and tries to intimidate receivers with his physicality," wrote Lance Zierlein of NFL.com. "Can redirect talented receivers with his length and flat-out stuff receivers with marginal foot quickness and strength."

Physical cornerbacks with length and pressing ability are all the rage in the NFL today. Despite rules designed to make life more difficult at the position, cornerbacks like Peters can create massive problems for timing-based passing offenses by rerouting receivers at the snap. 

Rob Rang of CBS Sports sees a comparison to Aqib Talib, another talented but troubled cornerback. 

"Just as Talib did when coming out of Kansas, Peters comes with off-field concerns, but there is no questioning either cornerback's length, aggression and ball-skills," Rang wrote.

Talib was the 20th overall pick in the 2008 draft. He's bounced around from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the New England Patriots to the Denver Broncos, but he's also made two Pro Bowls. The talent has often overshadowed the other non-football issues.  

The issue for Peters will be maturing off the field so that the talent on it can shine brightest. Helping the cause is the fact that he's entering a locker room littered with veteran defensive talent. Tamba Hali, Derrick Johnson, Justin Houston, Eric Berry and Smith are just a few of the players who will be tasked with teaching Peters how to survive and thrive as a professional. 

If his head is on straight, Peters has the talent to be the draft's best cornerback. 

Rarely is the most talented defensive back in a draft allowed to get to the second half of the first round. Peters' off-the-field concerns created the slip, but the Chiefs weren't interested in allowing Peters' slide to continue past No. 18 overall. 

Luckily, there are recent examples of cornerbacks escaping a troubled past to become top-flight NFL players. The Chiefs are rolling the dice on Peters becoming the next. 

Zach Kruse covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. 

Follow @zachkruse2