The Kansas City Chiefs finalized four more undrafted transactions on the evening of May 6, after their rookie minicamp this weekend.
They also made the Robert Rochell/Major Williams swap and the Josh Simmons signing official, announcing seven total moves on the NFL transaction log. KSHB 41 beat writer Nick Jacobs shared all the news on X, including the four newer transactions.
“The Chiefs have waived DB Will Brooks & WR Justin Lockhart (injured),” Jacobs noted. In their place, Kansas City signed undrafted rookies Jimmy Holiday (WR) and Cooper McDonald (LB) to go along with the aforementioned Williams.
In one last eighth and final transaction, the Chiefs also retained 2023 fifth-round pick BJ Thompson, who was just waived on May 3, on the reserve/non-football illness list. KC made it clear that they had every intention of keeping Thompson so long as he cleared waivers.
The medically-sidelined defensive end will not count against the 90-man roster limit.
Chiefs Add Onto WR & LB Strengths With Rookie Minicamp Signings Jimmy Holiday & Cooper McDonald
Wide receiver and linebacker are two of the deeper and stronger areas of the Kansas City roster, so Holiday and McDonald will certainly be hard-pressed to make the practice squad — let alone the Week 1 roster.
Holiday finished his collegiate career at Louisiana Tech, but transferred twice to get to that point. The 6-foot-1, 211-pound pass-catcher started out with Tennessee in 2020 and stayed through the 2023 campaign, but he never really got much run there as a wide receiver.
According to Football Database, Holiday had 6 receptions for 106 yards and 1 touchdown during his final year at Tennessee.
From there, Holiday spent the 2024 season with Western Kentucky, recording 20 catches for 326 yards and 2 touchdowns. His best campaign came at Louisiana Tech in 2025, where he posted 39 receptions for 476 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Notably, Holiday rushed for 182 yards and 4 touchdowns at Louisiana Tech, so he has some of that offensive versatility that Chiefs head coach Andy Reid loves. Holiday also returned kickoffs earlier in his collegiate career at Tennessee.
As for McDonald, the 6-foot-3, 240-pound linebacker transferred twice, similar to Holiday. He spent two years at Washington before another two at San Diego State, followed by one final season at TCU.
In total, McDonald started 31 of his 47 appearances, logging 133 collegiate tackles (76 solo) and 8.0 sacks. He’ll be another depth and special teams candidate for coordinators Steve Spagnuolo and Dave Toub to get their hands on.
Will Brooks & Justin Lockhart End Brief Stints in KC
Brooks and Lockhart were only on the 90-man roster for about a week and a half. Both were UDFAs who were signed after the draft.
Brooks is a safety who played out a three-year career at Tennessee. In his final season, he accumulated 59 total tackles (35 solo), 4 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, 5 pass defenses and a half-sack.
Lockhart was cut with an injury after receiving a “partially guaranteed” contract, according to the NFL transaction log.
The rookie wideout spent three years at Nevada and another three at San Jose State, and nearly surpassed the 1,000-yard receiving mark in 2024. Lockhart finished with 53 catches and 983 receiving yards (5 touchdowns) during that final NCAA season.
He also had 578- and 470-yard campaigns in 2022 and 2021, respectively. Lockhart missed the entire 2023 season.
In both cases, Holiday for Lockhart (at wide receiver) and McDonald for Brooks (on special teams) appear to be a straight swap.
