When the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs traded star franchise-tagged cornerback L’Jarius Sneed to the Tennessee Titans final month, followers had been immediately dissatisfied with the return.
After the Chiefs had been initially rumored to be in search of a second-round choose on this month’s draft, the star defender fetched a third-round choice — in 2025. The groups will even swap 2024 seventh-rounders, giving the Chiefs the best choice on this draft’s last body.
Per NFL Community’s Ian Rapoport, the Titans signed the 27-year-old Sneed to a four-year contract price $76 million, with $55 million assured.
It’s doubtless a high-stakes recreation of musical chairs amongst star large receivers in 2022 unrealistically raised expectations for the worth of a high cornerback.
The Chiefs executed a mega commerce two years in the past by sending star large receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins for a package deal of 5 draft picks — which helped construct the deep roster that has since delivered a pair of Tremendous Bowl victories.
The Hill commerce adopted the Las Vegas Raiders’ sending their first two 2022 draft alternatives to the Inexperienced Bay Packers for star wideout Davonte Adams. Throughout the draft itself, the Philadelphia Eagles despatched the 18th and a hundred and first total alternatives to the Titans for receiver A.J. Brown.
Hill, Adams and Brown would signal contracts with their new groups price a mixed $360 million.
New Chiefs receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown was additionally a part of a commerce involving a first-round choose between the Baltimore Ravens and Arizona Cardinals.
Many have speculated that — after a season the place the Chiefs’ coaching workers needed to handle a number of leg illnesses on a weekly foundation — well being considerations concerning Sneed drove down the commerce’s compensation. Arrowhead Satisfaction’s editor-in-chief, Pete Sweeney, has confirmed {that a} potential commerce with the Minnesota Vikings collapsed attributable to fears of the cornerback’s knee.
The hypothetical Vikings commerce would have despatched the Chiefs a 2024 fourth-rounder plus a 2025 third-round choice.
Nevertheless, different strikes all through the NFL over the previous week recommend one other obstacle to a crew profitable a commerce by sending a star participant elsewhere. Merely put, groups presently seem unwilling to double a excessive monetary price to pay a brand new participant with a excessive value in draft capital.
The NFL’s subsequent main commerce demonstrated that Chiefs followers in all probability must be joyful basic supervisor Brett Veach managed to land a draft choose just one 12 months away.
The Eagles traded move rusher Hasson Reddick — who has appeared in each recreation over the previous 4 seasons whereas totaling 50.5 sacks in that span — to the New York Jets for a 2026 third-rounder. If Reddick meets sack and defensive snap thresholds, Philadelphia will obtain the Jets’ second-round choice.
The Jets additionally inherited the $15 million owed Reddick in the course of the last season of his present contract.
Out of nowhere, this week noticed one other commerce ship a surprisingly low return.
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The Buffalo Payments despatched large receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans on Wednesday. The 30-year-old Diggs is coming off of six consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
The Payments obtained a 2025 second-round choice for the star receiver, a stark comparability to the 2022 large receiver market. To make issues worse, Buffalo will give up a Day 3 choose to Houston in every of the subsequent two drafts as a part of the commerce.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter offered additional particulars on Thursday that Houston had agreed to pay the remaining $22.5 million assured to Diggs by 2025 throughout this season — and would void the contract’s last three seasons, permitting the receiver to hit free company subsequent spring.
The underside line
To be honest, the three conditions usually are not equal. Sneed is, by all accounts, a beloved teammate who performed an important function in two championship runs. Reddick and (particularly) Diggs seem to have worn out their welcomes with their earlier groups. The defensive again can be presently the one of the three underneath contract past 2024.
Whereas Sneed is the youngest of the three gamers, he’s additionally previous for a participant signing his second contract — probably made extra regarding when paired together with his well being questions.
The widespread theme among the many three is the rapid hit on their new groups’ pocketbooks. Sneed, Reddick and Diggs will mix to earn $62.5 million for the 2024 season.
We are able to doubtless now take a look at the 2022 commerce frenzy involving a few of the league’s high large receiver expertise as an aberration. Whereas none of Sneed, Reddick, or Diggs (at this level in his profession) ever had hope of netting as excessive of returns, their current physique of labor steered the Chiefs, Eagles, and Payments ought to have anticipated extra.
With a number of high-profile large receivers — led by the Vikings’ Justin Jefferson—nearing the tip of their rookie contracts, it will likely be attention-grabbing to see if groups return to a willingness to successfully pay twice to amass high expertise.
