The Kansas City Chiefs may potentially trade standout corner L’Jarius Sneed if they cannot reach a long-term deal in the coming days. The Chiefs have moved to tag Sneed and are focusing on trying to resign Chris Jones. With him now being tagged, Sneed can find other teams to offer him a deal, and if the Chiefs don’t want to match it, they could trade the corner.
Many moving parts play into this, but at this point, it looks like the Chiefs will apply a non-exclusive franchise tag to one of their key pieces on defense. The franchise tag for corners in 2024 is $19.802 million for the year. This does mean the Chiefs would have to make some moves to be cap-compliant before the new league year starts.
According to several reports, compensation in a trade for Sneed is up for negotiation, and the Chiefs would be looking for at least a second-round pick. They could get more for the 27-year-old corner after his best professional season. Trading Sneed isn’t something I’d like to see the Chiefs do, but it’s not a move that would surprise me.
For the team, I get the thought process of making this move. They have identified and drafted multiple corners that can play over the past few years. Corner is a premium position, and Sneed probably isn’t the best corner on the roster. McDuffie makes trading Sneed much more palatable and keeps player costs down for the next couple of seasons.
For Sneed, this is his likely only chance at a big-money contract. He’d be expected to sign at least a four-year deal, making him 31 if he plays throughout the entire deal. He isn’t likely to be able to sign another big deal again. Coming off his best professional season and already having two Super Bowl rings, it’s likely time to chase the money.