The Chiefs addressed their needs on the defensive line by taking DE Tamba Hali of Penn St. with their first-round pick of the NFL Draft on Saturday. Hali terrorized Big 10 quarterbacks as a senior, with a conference-leading 11 sacks. He was sixth nationally in sacks. He recorded 65 sacks, 17 for losses.

Hali came to the U.S. at the age of 10, fleeing his native Liberia to join his father. His dad came to the U.S. in hopes of raising enough money to bring his kids over. Hali’s mother is still there.

Many thought the Chiefs might address their secondary with the first pick, by taking a cornerback. Two top CB’s were taken earlier in the draft. The Rams selected Tye Hill (Clemson) with the 11th pick and the Chargers went with Antonio Cromartie (Florida St.) 18th.

In the second round, the Chiefs decided to focus on their secondary, but to the surprise of many, they didn’t draft a cornerback. Instead, the Chiefs chose Purdue safety Bernard Pollard, who skipped his senior season to go pro.

He was a second-team All-Big 10 selection last season, leading the Boilermakers with 92 tackles. Pollard picked off three passes and deflected three more. He was also a force on special teams with five blocked punts in his career.

He was suspended for two days before his junior season after getting into a verbal disagreement with a coach.

In the third round the Chiefs went with offense, taking Alabama quarterback Brodie Croyle. He threw for 2,499 yards, 14 touchdowns and four interceptions last season for the Tide. He missed of his junior season with a knee injury

The St. Louis Rams had one of the worst defenses in the NFL last season, and they continued to address that problem on Saturday afternoon by taking corner back Tye Hill of Clemson with the 15th pick of the NFL Draft. The Rams originally had the 11th pick but traded it to Denver and the Broncos who took Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler. In return, the Rams moved four spots lower in the first round to 15th and they got an additional pick in the third round at 68th overall.

As a senior at Clemson, Hill had 54 tackles, five for losses with one sack and three interceptions. Hill is still on a bit of a learning curve, starting his career as a running back then switching over to CB. He has just three seasons worth of experience at the position.

The Rams’ defense gave up 26.8 points per game, which was second worst in the NFL last season and they were third-worst in total defense, allowing 350.1 yards per game. During the off-season, St. Louis signed safety Corey Chavous from the Vikings and CB Fakhir Brown from the Saints to help seal up their defensive back field. They also signed DL La’Roi Glover from the Cowboys and LB Will Witherspoon from the Panthers.

In round two, St. Louis went with Colorado tight end Joel Klopfenstein. There was some thought that the Rams might go with tight end Vernon Davis of Maryland if he was available in the first round, but he went to the 49ers with the sixth pick.

Klopfenstein earned All-Big 12 First Team honors last season, catching 32 passes for 453 yards and four touchdowns.

With their extra pick in the third round, the Rams selected LSU defensive tackle Clade Wroten, who made 49 tackles (10.5 for losses) and collected six sacks.

They continued their quest for defense in round four, by selecting outside linebacker Jon Alston of Stanford. He made 52 tackles (9.5 for losses) and had 6.5 sacks. Alston also forced a fumble and picked off a pass.

With their third pick of the third round, the Rams went with USC tight end Dominique Byrd, who caugh 29 passes for 306 yards last season.