The Kansas City Chiefs offseason has been a complicated one. Brett Veach, per usual, is retooling a dynasty on the fly. That means identifying weaknesses, and building upon perceived strengths. For Kansas City, one of those strengths is their secondary, which is headlined by cornerback Trent McDuffie.
McDuffie is one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL, and is due a contract extension soon. Cornerback is a position of value, especially in Kansas City, as Steve Spagnuolo is one of the best defensive coordinators in NFL history. McDuffie provides Spagnuolo the option to put his top cornerback on an island. At his best, the 24-year-old can shut down one side of the field entirely.
Trent McDuffie getting more expensive by the day for Chiefs
Derek Stingley Jr. signed a three-year, $90 million extension this offseason with the Houston Texans, making him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history. A McDuffie contract could be even higher than Stingley's, as he is next in line. As FanSided's Scott Rogust pointed out, the longer the Chiefs wait to extend McDuffie, the greater his payday will be.
"Besides McDuffie, there are cornerbacks like fellow 2022 NFL Draft classmates Sauce Gardner of the New York Jets...who is due for a new contract, and will undoubtedly get paid. While Gardner has Pro Bowl nods, McDuffie is a First team All-Pro."
Chiefs must break from Andy Reid philosophy to extend Trent McDuffie
Extending McDuffie now is the right play for the Chiefs, but it also goes against Andy Reid's playbook in a sense. As Sam Robinson of Pro Football Rumors pointed out, Reid's teams tend to employ low-cost talent at cornerback.
One need not look further than what happened to McDuffie's former running mate, L'Jarius Sneed, just last offseason. The Chiefs traded Sneed to the Titans for draft capital, and he received an extension from Tennessee shortly thereafter.
The Chiefs felt they could afford to trade Sneed elsewhere because they had McDuffie on a rookie contract in tow. The same cannot be said this time around, which is why the two sides are open to a new deal.
Going against the grain – especially when that habit involves Reid – is very un-Chiefs like, but in this case it makes the most sense.