KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs secured a pretty good haul for Trent McDuffie — four NFL draft picks, including No. 29 overall this year — in a trade with the Rams on Wednesday.

But we’ve covered that.

This is more into the weeds.

The Chiefs will now have nine picks in next month’s draft, which could have a domino effect on how they manage the entire selection process — starting at No. 9 overall.

How so?

Well, let’s take a peek at last year for the evidence. The Chiefs didn’t have a selection in the initial 30 picks a year ago — not uncommon for a team that went to five Super Bowls in six years. But they also had a huge gap in the middle of the draft — zero selections over a 48-pick stretch from Nos. 85-133 and only one selection over a 67-pick stretch from Nos. 66-133.

The effect? They lost the ability to significantly react to how the draft was unfolding.

The Chiefs notably left a draft deep at running back without ever selecting one. They should’ve picked a back earlier in the draft, to be sure, but they also didn’t know they’d miss their chance.

Until it was too late.

After selecting Nohl Williams at No. 85, six running backs were selected during the next 48 picks — with the Chiefs holding none of them.

It was a run on the rushers.

The Chiefs, who had traded one pick earlier in the draft before that rush, were left on the sideline.

Which brings us to the present. After trading McDuffie to the Rams for three picks this year and one next year, the Chiefs hold the following overall selections: Nos. 9, 29, 40, 74, 109, 147, 168, 177 and 210. Before the trade, they held only one selection in the final 110 picks (which also mitigated their ability to have the ammunition to make a move for a player during the draft).

But the bigger point: They won’t have the extended wait at the start of the draft, nor the wait during the draft. They can react. They can adjust.

Early, too.

Each NFL team, Chiefs included, uses its own mock draft tools — which might not influence how they scout players but could have an effect on how they strategize their own picks. They want to know the likelihood of who will be available when they’re on the clock.

The exercise has been particularly difficult to navigate for the Chiefs, who haven’t picked in the top 20 since 2017 (and that required a fairly notable trade).

Look at that history:

— A year ago, they had one of the initial 62 picks.

— In 2024, they had only one of the initial 62 picks and just two of the initial 130.

— In 2023, they picked once in the first 54 selections.

— In 2022, they selected four times in the first 62 picks.

Guess which draft became the foundation of two Super Bowl supporting casts?

The new quantity of picks matters. The quality matters. But so does the ability to react — it’s not the most important part of the acquisitions from the McDuffie trade, but it’s hidden bonus, of sorts.

When the Chiefs pick at No. 29 — the selection they acquired from the Rams — it will feel like a familiar spot at the back end of the opening round.

But there ought to be an unfamiliar feeling: freedom.

They will have already added one rookie (and therefore addressed one position of need) to the roster with the ninth overall pick — but they will also turn around and make another pick just 11 spots later.

They can ask themselves questions that will have clearer answers than recent years: Do I have a shot of getting this player 11 picks later? Do I have a shot of getting this position just 11 picks later?

That’s a tad harder to gauge when you change the number to 32.

It could affect the Chiefs’ overall draft strategy. They can react to what’s available. It should prevent them from overreaching for a position, particularly early in the draft, given they will soon have other chances.

They’ll be better equipped for the middle rounds, too. It would serve the Chiefs well to prioritize keeping all their picks, but if there’s the same run on a single position that unfolded a year ago, they’ll have the ammunition to respond. They now have three fifth-round picks — potential bait to move up for a particular player, considering that move will be more incremental.

They can reassert some control on a three-day stretch in which so much is out of their control — this is essentially what the McDuffie trade has offered them.

It’s more tickets and one particularly premium ticket, first and foremost.

But it’s more control for how they cash them.

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