Chiefs will not trade Marcus Peters barring historic return

Rumors are circulating about Marcus Peters, but the Kansas City Chiefs won’t be trading him unless they receive a return of epic proportions.

Name the last NFL trade that involved a superstar in his prime. I’ll wait.

Randy Moss being dealt from the Oakland Raiders to the New England Patriots during the 2007 draft is the correct answer, and there are multiple levels to that. Moss was coming off a three-year period in which he amassed only one 1,000-yard season. At age 29, many believed Moss had seen his best years.

Fast forward more than a decade, and rumors are starting to circulate that the Kansas City Chiefs are open to dealing corner Marcus Peters. Peters, 25, is a two-time All-Pro who has forced 24 turnovers in his three-year career (19 interceptions, five forced fumbles). Nobody has been more prolific in that department over that span.

Much of the noise surrounding the topic has come from Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk and a tweet from Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, who both suggested Kansas City could explore the move. Peters’ one-game, team-imposed suspension certainly factors into the thinking, along with the recent moves by general manager Brett Veach to acquire youngster Kendall Fuller and veteran David Amerson.

Still, any notion of dealing Peters would clash against common sense on multiple fronts for general manager Brett Veach. After being forced to start Kenneth Acker, Phillip Gaines, Terrance Mitchell and Darrelle Revis opposite Peters last season, the Chiefs are loading up to avoid that issue again. Thus the aforementioned acquisitions, with Fuller slated to start and Amerson to compete for time in nickel and dime packages.

Dealing Peters would create a massive void for Veach to fill. Without a first-round pick (traded for Patrick Mahomes in last year’s draft), Kansas City would need to acquire such a selection for Peters just to replace him. To make a trade worth it, the Chiefs would need additional draft capital or a starting-caliber player along with the pick. In short, it would take a historical haul.

Kansas City also has financial reasons to retain Peters. The former University of Washington star is scheduled to make $3.049 million this season. Assuming the Chiefs pick up his fifth-year option, Peters will make approximately $9 million in 2019. If Veach and Peters’ representation can’t agree on a long-term deal after that, Kansas City could apply the franchise tag. Adjusted for probable inflation, the Chiefs could be looking at $15.5 million against the cap in 2020.

All told, Peters is essentially on a three-year, $27.5 million deal until he turns 28 years old. The Chiefs aren’t trading a top-flight corner in his prime, on that contract, for anything less than a king’s ransom.

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Despite his well-publicized protests during the national anthem, the flag toss at MetLife Stadium and the subsequent suspension, the Chiefs have kept a positive view of Peters. Much of that is due to both his on-field prowess and his charitable side away from the field, helping families and children in need regularly.

Doldrums of boredom will turn small murmurs into large stories throughout the NFL offseason. In this instance, barring a trade bordering on the obscene, the Chiefs and Peters will remain an item well into the future.

History tends to tell us the future, and in the NFL, players the caliber of Marcus Peters stay put.