The Kansas City Chiefs continue to tinker with the roster ahead of Free Agency. Per multiple reports, the team has signed former Buffalo Bills 2022 first-round pick, cornerback Kaiir Elam. He spent 2025 between the Bills, Dallas Cowboys, and Tennessee Titans, where he struggled. Will that be different in KC?
After losing a pair of cornerbacks, Trent McDuffie, via a trade with the Los Angeles Rams, and his teammate, who will also play on the same roster, Jaylen Watson, the Chiefs are adding former Florida standout Kaiir Elam to the roster.
There’s no doubt this is a very deep draft class for cornerbacks, but if the season started today, second-year man Noel Williams and veteran Kristen Fulton would be on the field for KC’s defense. By adding Elam, even though he’s massively underachieved since he was drafted, the chance to work with the cornerbacks coach, Dave Merritt, could be a win for both Elam and the Chiefs.
He’s the perfect fit for Steve Spagnuolo’s defense. He’s tall and lanky, with excellent speed. In 2022, he was considered one of the top corners in the draft. The Chiefs, if you remember, traded up in the first round to draft McDuffie, and that forced Buffalo to do the same to land the Florida Gator corner.
It’s clear which team won that competition, but none of that matters now as Elam will have the opportunity to resurrect his career in a Chiefs uniform. I’m sure when he talks to reporters at some point, he’ll indicate his strong desire to play against the team that drafted him four years ago.
General Manager Brett Veach has always taken a shine to former first-round picks and has tried to make them work in Kansas City, where they failed elsewhere. If Elam can be a depth piece, his time in a Chiefs uniform could extend beyond 2026. After all, he’s just 24 years old, so there is zero risk in signing him.
Last season, after being traded by the Cowboys, they refused his fifth-year option, thus making him a free agent. He did have a cup of coffee with the Titans at the end of 2025, but it was clear he wasn’t a fit for the AFC South team.
It remains to be seen if he’ll be anything more than a failed first-round pick, but he was an impressive signee and could benefit from a strong organization with one of the best defensive coaching staffs in the NFL.
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