KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs, after swapping first-round positions with Cleveland, have selected wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin of Pittsburgh with the 26th overall pick in the NFL draft.
The 6-foot-6 Baldwin had 822 yards receiving for the Panthers last year. He will join Dwayne Bowe, a talented but inconsistent veteran who went to his first Pro Bowl last year but was embarrassed in a 30-7 playoff loss to Baltimore when he did not catch a single pass.
Chaos reigned at Chiefs headquarters when Baltimore, holding the 26th pick, did not announce a decision until the clock had moved to Kansas City. After several confusing minutes, commissioner Roger Goodell announced the Chiefs had taken Baldwin.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) – The Denver Broncos selected Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller with the second pick of the NFL draft Thursday night as they began fixing the league’s worst defense.
John Elway, who was brought in at the end of last season as chief of football operations, had gushed over the premier pass-rusher in the draft. Coming off the worst season in their 51-year history, the Broncos’ top priority was fixing a defense that gave up a whopping 471 points.
The second selection was the highest in team history following a 4-12 debacle that cost Josh McDaniels his job as head coach and de facto general manager and led to a front office shake-up.