Mansoor Delane Tabbed as Defensive ROY Award Favorite by NFL Exec After Landing with Chiefs

After the Kansas City Chiefs traded up in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft to select Mansoor Delane, at least one person in the league thinks he has the potential to be an immediate impact player for their defense.

Per The Athletic's Mike Sando, one NFL executive has pegged Delane as the favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year:

"I think the LSU corner (Delane) is Defensive Rookie of the Year. The movement skills, the production on the ball, the physicality. They get a cost-controlled guy who is going to be really productive, and they moved up to get him instead of waiting to see what happens. I give them credit when a lot of people thought they were going to sit tight and take an offensive lineman."

The Chiefs moved up three spots in a trade with the Cleveland Browns to select Delane. He fills a glaring need in Kansas City after Trent McDuffie was traded to the Los Angeles Rams in March.

Grading Mansoor Delane Pick

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Jaylen Watson, who started 15 games for the Chiefs last season, also left to join the Rams in free agency.

Kansas City didn't do much in free agency to add depth in the secondary. Kader Kohou and Kaiir Elam were the only cornerbacks signed by the team, but both are playing on one-year deals.

Delane is stepping into a situation where he will be tasked with starting right away. B/R's Daniel Harms noted in a scouting report that Delane is a "physical" and "sticky" corner in man coverage.

Even though Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has historically favored a zone-coverage scheme, his track record of developing cornerbacks should make Delane a quick study as he gets comfortable in the NFL.

Watson went from being a seventh-round pick in 2022 to being a solid starter that earned him a multiyear contract from another playoff contender in free agency.

L'Jarius Sneed was a fourth-round pick in 2020, then became the primary cornerback on two Super Bowl-winning teams during his time in Kansas City.

McDuffie was the only one from that group who entered the NFL with high expectations as a first-round pick in 2022. He lived up to them, making the All-Pro team in 2023 and '24.

Those are big shoes for Delane to fill, but he has the skill set to step right in with a coaching staff that knows how to maximize cornerback talent.

Kansas City has had four players win Defensive Rookie of the Year since the award was introduced in 1967. Two of them were cornerbacks, with Marcus Peters in 2015 being the most recent one.