Breaking down Jalen Ramsey’s best fits and trade ideas
By Ian Wharton
Kansas City Chiefs
Proposed trade: 2020 first rounder, 2020 third rounder, CB Charvarius Ward
Why they should do it:
The Chiefs are all-in and possess some of the most extreme strengths of any team in the league. Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill, Chris Jones, Frank Clark, Kendall Fuller and Tyrann Mathieu could use one more high-impact starter to make sure they have the talent to dethrone the Patriots in the AFC. Ramsey can be that solution.
The bones of the defense are much better than last year’s but Ramsey would put a massive bow on it. Their weakest position would then be at linebacker, but that’s the spot you’d rather be lacking at compared to pass-rusher and secondary.
For the short-term, this is a no-brainer decision.
Why they shouldn’t:
This would be a difficult deal for the long-term because of how much money the Chiefs have tied up across the roster. Either valuable depth pieces would be replaced with zero margin for error, or key starters like Sammy Watkins would be on the chopping block after this year. Ramsey and Patrick Mahomes would take up a massive amount of cap percentage, and we’re not even considering Jones’ or Fuller’s future deals.
Losing the picks and a young player with some upside in Ward hurts because of their limited funding situation. Ward may not prove to be a good system fit compared to their more man-heavy approach last year, but if he’s average, the defense might be good enough as-is. They need cheap starters soon, and trading two top-100 picks on rookie deals is hard to swallow.
The Chiefs should still do it if Ramsey will play on his current deal.