The Kansas City Chiefs have permitted CB L’Jarius Sneed to seek a trade after placing the franchise tag on him. Sneed and the Chiefs have until mid-July to agree on a long-term contract extension, or they could trade him any time before the 2024 NFL trade deadline. According to one NFL reporter, seven teams have already expressed interest.
L’Jarius Sneed Drawing Interest From 7 Teams
Sneed, who just turned 27 in January, was a key member of Kansas City’s Super Bowl championship and Steve Spagnuolo’s defense. He was drafted out of Louisiana Tech University to the Chiefs in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft and has quickly become one of the best cornerbacks in the entire league.
If Sneed wasn’t franchise-tagged, he would be one of the most sought-after free agents on the open market. Now, any team interested in adding Sneed will have to send compensation to the Chiefs in a trade after Kansas City gave him the franchise tag.
Even though acquiring Sneed is more complicated now that he won’t be available on the open market, there are still plenty of interested teams. According to USA Today’s Tyler Dragon, the Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons, and Indianapolis Colts are all expected to be interested in Sneed.
The Jaguars, Colts, Titans, and Patriots all likely face an uphill battle to try and acquire Sneed via trade as they all play in the AFC. While the Chiefs may be willing to just deal him to the highest bidder, we’ve seen teams avoid trading their star players within their conference.
The most intriguing of those seven teams is the Lions, who are coming off their most successful season in 30 years as they were one game away from making the Super Bowl.
Despite going 12-5 and winning the NFC North for the first time in franchise history, the Lions struggled all season long with their pass defense, which allowed the sixth-most yards per game. Adding Sneed to shore up their secondary could potentially put Detroit over the top.
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Any team that acquires Sneed will not only add one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL but one with plenty of postseason experience. In 13 postseason games, which includes two Super Bowl wins, Sneed has 53 solo tackles, 22 assists, two sacks, and one interception.
Sneed’s future with the Chiefs will be an interesting storyline to monitor this offseason, as they control his rights but won’t hesitate to part ways if they don’t agree on a long-term deal.
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