The Titans Fleeced The Chiefs In Blockbuster L’Jarius Sneed Trade & Most Ball Knowers Can’t Make Sense Of It

Matt Fitzgerald·
CULTURESPORTS
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l'Jarius Sneed
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The Kansas City Chiefs almost certainly would not have won back-to-back Super Bowls without the brilliance of cornerback L’Jarius Sneed. He punched the ball out from Zay Flowers at the goal line to help the Chiefs win the AFC Championship Game 17-10 in Baltimore. His skills in coverage were a big part of the winning formula when KC topped the 49ers in the Big Game. All season long, Sneed played exceptionally well.

After a public plea to GM Brett Veach for a new contract, the franchise-tagged Sneed will instead play the rest of his prime with the Tennessee Titans. The most baffling part of all this is that Sneed didn’t want to stick around for a run at a three-peat, nor was Kansas City overly eager to wait out the market for better trade compensation.

I struggle to make sense of this. A seventh-round draft pick swap and a third-round selection for 2025? That’s it? WTF. Sneed is a legit, high-end cornerback who has plenty of good years in front of him. If the circumstances as to why this trade was so lopsided are rather unclear, one thing is certain: The Titans are not messing around this offseason.

Suddenly, the AFC South is a whole lot more interesting, and the opposing quarterbacks who have to face Tennessee in the division have a suddenly much-improved secondary to pass against. CJ Stroud, Trevor Lawrence and Anthony Richardson can’t be happy about this development.

When you look at the respective rosters of the Texans, Jaguars and Colts, too, I’m sure any of them would’ve been thrilled to add Sneed to their defensive backfield.

For that price and that draft capital, damn near all other 31 other teams should’ve been on the horn with Veach trying to hammer out a deal. I guess new Titans coach Brian Callahan has convinced the organization that Will Levis is THE GUY at QB, because Tennessee is making moves like a team that’s ready to go all-in.

Freeing up the cap space Sneed was absorbing with the franchise tag could mean Kansas City could make some moderate improvements across the rest of the roster. I get that shelling out a big contract for Sneed would put the Chiefs in a bind since they’ll eventually have to pay All-Pro DB Trent McDuffie big money, and ante up for Patrick Mahomes’ protectors and linebacker Nick Bolton. Trading Sneed gives them more flexibility on those impending big-picture decisions.

That had to be a factor as to why Sneed was a tough sell. Nevertheless, it just feels odd to me and many others that Sneed didn’t have a larger quantity of suitors who’d give up more to get him.

Trust me, I can grasp that Sneed would not be tagged again next offseason, and that the Chiefs probably would’ve seen him walk for no compensation in that scenario. But like…still? I’d have kept him around, maybe nabbed another cornerback early in the 2024 draft, or in the first two rounds in 2025. Reset the rookie contract clock that way when you cross those thresholds. Keep Sneed around to maximize your shot at immortality and a third consecutive Super Bowl triumph! No? Alright. You do you, Kansas City. Obviously trading Tyreek Hill didn’t stop y’all from winning ‘chips. We’ll see if the rest of the defense can pick up the slack in his stead. Sure helps having Chris Jones back.

Look at how Sneed deaded Tyreek in the playoffs, by the way. The guy can straight-up end the best of the best in press coverage.

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