Chiefs and Browns make first trade of 2026 draft and both eventually fill needs
The Cleveland Browns, who were rumored to be willing to trade the No. 6 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, did so on Thursday night when they traded the pick to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Cleveland traded the sixth overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft to the Chiefs for the ninth overall pick and the 74th overall pick in the third round and the 148th overall pick in the fifth round.
The Browns now hold the No. 9 and No. 24 picks in the first round of the draft. They have a total of 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns watch from the sideline during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field on September 7, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
So the Chiefs gave up three picks when making the first trade of the first round.
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We know what both clubs’ fan bases thought before the election:
Chiefs fans thought we knew something they didn’t. And then the Chiefs drafted cornerback Mansoor Delane from LSU; This was undoubtedly due to the club trading Pro Bowl cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams at the beginning of the season.
So the Chiefs are filling a major need assuming Delane is indeed the quality corner they believe he is.
LSU Tigers CB Mansoor Delane celebrates a defensive stop against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium in South Carolina. (Ken Ruinard/USA TODAY Network)
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Meanwhile, ESPN’s Mel Kiper didn’t like the pick. He had Delane as the 14th best player in the draft.
“It was a necessity,” responded ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL linebacker.
Browns fans didn’t think that way.
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They were probably thinking something like, “We screwed up.”
That’s understandable because they’re Brown fans and this might as well be Brown Browning.
The Browns dropped three spots, gave up the chance to draft linebacker Sonny Styles from Ohio State to the Washington Commanders, receiver Jordyn Tyson to the New Orleans Saints, and then the Browns took their chance with their newly acquired No. 9 pick:
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Offensive tackle Spencer Fano of Utah.
Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on February 24, 2026 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
Fano is good. And he instantly makes the Browns’ offensive line better because he’ll likely be the starting left tackle for them.
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So what will Browns fans think of this pick?
They’ll probably wonder why the Browns didn’t draft Miami’s Francis Mauigoa, who was drafted 10th overall to the New York Giants and vowed to “die for” Jaxson Dart if necessary. They’ll be wondering about that because Brown fans are expecting the worst.
