The Kansas City Chiefs have been keeping an eye on Mizzou DE Aldon Smith for some time. Mike Kelly, voice of the Missouri Tigers, talked with Josh Looney on Chiefs Live! this week and shared an interesting story from last year.
"A year ago [Missouri LB] Sean [Weatherspoon] was completing his college career and was getting ready for last year's NFL draft and went on the tour where he visited a number of teams.
"I just happened to have knee surgery last April so I was in the training room at Missouri one afternoon and 'Spoon walks in. He had just got back from visiting the Chiefs. We talked a little bit about how it went. [He said,] 'Oh, it was great. I loved the people up there. Everybody up there was very kind to me.'
"But then he looked at me and he said, 'There's no way I'm going to Kansas City'. I said, 'OK how do you know there's no way the Chiefs will take you?' He said, 'Because we spent the entire conversation talking about Aldon Smith.'"
Smith wasn't eligible to come out last year so the Chiefs were doing some due diligence at least a year in advance. Chiefs GM Scott Pioli talked a little bit at the Combine about defensive ends making the transition to outside linebacker. He said Combine drills for those players are interesting as you try to figure out how athletic they are and what kind of movement they can have.
Interesting stuff. Keep an eye on Smith and the Chiefs in the 2011 NFL draft.