Kansas City, Mo. ? With his first draft selection as the man in charge in Kansas City, Scott Pioli took dead aim at the most glaring of his new team’s many needs.

Tyson Jackson, a quick and strong defensive end from LSU, was taken with the No. 3 overall pick and should lend immediate improvement to a defense that set an NFL record for pass-rushing futility with only 10 sacks.

Pioli admitted he had his eye on several players for the highest pick the Chiefs have exercised since 1988.

“There were a couple of players we liked at this spot and this was the player we liked the most,” he said. The man who helped build the New England Patriots dynasty before replacing Carl Peterson last January agreed the Chiefs “have a number of positions of need.”

“There were a couple of players we felt were very good at this point who were available at No. 3. We valued a couple of players very similarly and for different reasons they had different strengths, different ways we felt could help our football team. When we factored in need, we see where we’re at in a front seven standpoint, we felt that need also came into the equation here.”

Jackson, 6 feet 4, 295 pounds, is also the third LSU player in three years to be taken with Kansas City’s first selection. In 2007, the Chiefs went for wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, then a year ago selected defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey.

The Chiefs plan to go to the 3-4 defense most of the time, and coach Todd Haley said he foresees Jackson playing opposite the tight end.

“He is strong and he’s a big man who can run and move around on the football field,” Haley said. “I know our defensive coaches are very excited.”

Jackson started 38 of 53 games for LSU and totaled 122 tackles. He had 4 1/2 sacks last year — not a head-turning number but still nearly half of what the entire Chiefs defense managed while going 2-14 in 2008.

“We look at Tyson as a third-down player. He’s got some pass-rush skills, there’s no doubt about it,” said Haley, who replaced the fired Herm Edwards. “That’s one of the things that excited the coaches about him is there are some pass-rush skills, and when you can take advantage of some matchups inside, it could really help us.”

Unlike most other top picks, Jackson was not in New York. He got the news while staying in a New Orleans hotel with friends and family.

“I am a country boy. I grew up in a little small Bayou town in Louisiana,” he said. “I couldn’t deal with that New York-type atmosphere. I just stayed at home. Right now we’re just celebrating. I’m just so proud that the Kansas City Chiefs selected me as the third pick. I’ve got a roller coaster going through my body right now. I really can’t explain it.”

He said fans should not be deceived by the fact he had fewer than five sacks for the Tigers last year. He’s eighth in school history with 181/2 sacks.

“That’s been put out that I had trouble rushing the passer,” he said. “But not to brag on myself, but looking at LSU the last four years, I’m ranked among the best in career sacks. I do my fair share of rushing the passer. I’m going to do my very best on every snap to put constant pressure on the quarterback. It’s no problem for me playing the run, and I can contribute on the pass. I’ll give them 100 percent effort every play and try to do my best.”

Pioli, known for his wheeling and dealing as the Patriots’ director of pro personnel for nine years, said he got no calls on Saturday from anyone interested in trading up to the No. 3.

“Any time you want to make a trade, you have to have a partner to make a trade,” he said. “In this case, there were no partners who wanted to talk to us about trades.”

After giving New England his second-round pick for quarterback Matt Cassel and linebacker Mike Vrabel, Pioli had no other selection on Saturday.

Pioli also denied broadcast reports that he had reached agreement with Cassel on a new contract.

“Someone had told me that report was out there. That’s news to me,” he said.