The 2024 NFL Scouting Combine has officially arrived. 

The Kansas City Chiefs have a long history of adding top performers from the NFL Scouting Combine. As recently as the 2023 NFL draft, the team added players who tested among the top at their position groups in Indianapolis. The organization has also valued players in free agency and trade who were top performers.

The latest crop of prospects will soon participate in on-field drills and workouts that will help shape the thought process of NFL coaches and GMs ahead of the 2024 NFL draft. A good showing can change perceptions or reinforce what decision-makers already know about a given prospect. This goes beyond the drills and tests prospects will be put through at the combine, also applying to team interviews and medical examinations.

Here's a look back at some of the players currently on the roster in Kansas City who posted top combine performances during their heyday as NFL draft prospects.

2015: OT Donovan Smith

I didn't particularly want to include players who are pending free agents, but I was reminded of Donovan Smith's freakish performance at the 2015 NFL Scouting Combine. After measuring at 6-foot-6 and 338 pounds, Smith posted insanely impressive vertical and broad jumps. His 32-inch vert was the 91st percentile among offensive tackles and his 109-inch broad jump ranked in the 87th percentile. It's one thing to post those numbers if he was an offensive tackle who barely touched 300 pounds, but the fact that he hit those numbers at his weight speaks to just how explosive he is.

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2016: OL Joe Thuney

Speaking of athletic offensive linemen, Joe Thuney represents that rare new breed. At one time it was rare to see offensive linemen run a 40-yard dash under five seconds, but it's becoming closer to the norm. Aggregate data from the NFL Scouting Combine since 2000 shows the average 40-yard dash time by O-Linemen is just 5.27 seconds. Thuney posted a 97th percentile performance at the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine with a 4.95s 40-yard dash. Jason Spriggs’ 4.94s mark took home the top prize, but it's safe to say that Thuney had a much more successful career.

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2017: QB Patrick Mahomes

Patrick Mahomes didn't exactly blow anyone away with his performance. Looking back at it now, the top marks he earned in the 3-cone and short shuttle should have told us something. His short shuttle (4.08s) ranked in the 93rd percentile among quarterbacks, while the 3-cone (6.88) ranked in the 87th percentile. These drills measure flexibility, burst, balance, agility, and change in direction, which are all apparent when Mahomes uses his legs to scramble and pick up yardage in key situations, especially during the playoffs. 

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2018: S Justin Reid

Justin Reid was known for his elite athleticism coming out of Stanford. Reid's 4.40s 40-yard dash time was a 94th percentile mark among safeties at the NFL combine. His 3-cone drill (6.65s) ranked in the 93rd percentile. Both were the second-best marks among safeties in 2018 next to Penn State S Troy Apke. It certainly shows up on the field when it comes to his versatility and ability to make plays as a deep safety or up in the box.

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2019: LB Drue Tranquill

If you had to guess the drill that Drue Tranquill excelled in, it probably would be something related to his agility or coverage ability and not his strength. That's simply not the case, though. Tranquill's 31 repetitions of 225 on the bench press ranked in the 96th percentile among linebackers. It tied for the most bench press reps by a linebacker in 2019 with USC's Porter Gustin also posting 31 reps.  

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2020: LB Willie Gay Jr.

Willie Gay Jr. might be on his way out in Kansas City, but there is no denying that he's a rare athlete. During the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, he posted a 99th percentile broad jump at 138 inches. His 4.46s 40-yard dash ranked in the 97th percentile for linebackers and he did it all at an impressive height-weight combination of 6-foot-1 and 243 pounds.

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2021: C Creed Humphrey

Creed Humphrey is one of the best athletes at the center position in NFL history, so it should come as no shock to learn he tore up the 2021 NFL Scouting Combine. His 10-yard split (1.71s), broad jump (112 inches), and vertical jump (33 inches) all stood out the most, ranking 95th, 94th, and 92nd percentile, respectively. All of those numbers pop off the screen and make plenty of sense when you see Humphrey working in space on the NFL gridiron.

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2022: LB Leo Chenal

Leo Chenal's vertical jump (40.5 inches) tied for the second-best mark at the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine among linebackers, with only Georgia’s Channing Tindall posting a better mark. It ranked in the 96th percentile. His broad jump (128 inches) tied for the third-best mark among linebackers and ranked in the 94th percentile. It all speaks to how explosive he is on the football field and when scaling Super Bowl parade buses. 

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2022: RB Isiah Pacheco

Isiah Pacheco might be known for running like a kid breaking in a new pair of shoes, but he lit the runway on fire during the 40-yard dash at the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine. His 4.37s 40-yard dash tied South Dakota State RB Pierre Strong Jr. for the best mark among running backs in 2022, ranking in the 95th percentile all-time. Pacheco posted his number weighing 10 pounds more than Strong. 

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2023: WR Rashee Rice

Rashee Rice didn't run an incredible 40-yard dash in 2023, but some of his other numbers suggested that he was just as explosive as he has proven to be in the NFL. His get-off was shown in his 10-yard split (1.49s), which ranked in the 93rd percentile among wide receivers. His vertical jump of 41 inches tied for the best mark among wide receivers in 2023 and was a 95th percentile mark. His broad jump (128 inches) was nothing to scoff at either.

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