Chiefs’ cornerback L’Jarius Sneed is available until shown otherwise, and the Lions must be willing to outbid these seven teams for him.
As expected, the Kansas City Chiefs placed the franchise tag on cornerback L’Jarius Sneed ahead of the March 5 deadline.
It’s also pretty clear he is available, since it’s the non-exclusive franchise tag and a tag and trade scenario is in play. Kansas City’s recent history of not paying big money to cornerbacks also says Sneed is available.
Of course if Sneed gets an offer under the non-exclusive tag the Chiefs can just match it. And they don’t have to take any trade offers that come. They could just keep Sneed for $19.8 million in 2024, and go from there.
The signing of defensive tackle Chris Jones to a massive contract before free agency starts seems to be a sign the Chiefs will be open for business on Sneed. Two separate recent reports have pointed to the Lions being among teams interested in him, which is easily expected given their need for a legitimate No. 1 corner.
It’s also not surprising so many teams have interest in Sneed.
Using the reports from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and USA TODAY’s Tyler Dragon to make it very easy, here are 7 teams the Lions must outbid for Sneed.
7. Miami Dolphins
Fowler’s report mentioned the Dolphins, alongside the Lions, as a team “worth keeping an eye on” for Sneed. They will officially part ways with Xavien Howard when the new league year starts, and they are set to lose defensive tackle Christian Wilkins in free agency.
Miami’s cap woes (still more than $23 million over before the March 13 deadline to be compliant as of Sunday afternoon, according to Over The Cap) make it patently unlikely they’ll be serious players for Sneed. But if there’s enough will, there could be a way to make it happen.
6. Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings were among the teams mentioned by Dragon that have “expressed interest” in Sneed. They could certainly use some help at cornerback, and if they lose Kirk Cousins they’ll presumably still have some money to spend after going with a cheaper veteran replacement.
But it’s fair to think the combination cost of draft capital and a contract that’s now had the bar set by the deal the Chicago Bears gave Jaylon Johnson (four years, $76 million; $19 million per year) will be too much for Minnesota to seriously enter the mix for Sneed. If they snooze while waiting for what Cousins does and pivoting to who they can get to replace him, they might lose here.
5. Tennessee Titans
Tennessee is another team Dragon named in his report. If nothing else they have a lot money to spend as free agency looms. So they could sign Sneed to an offer the Chiefs can’t/won’t match, and willingly give up the two-first round picks.
Will Lomas over at Titan Sized went the trade route for the Titans, with this proposal.
“The offer that I would make is the Tennessee Titans second-round pick in exchange for Sneed and the Chiefs third-round pick.”
The Titans’ second-round pick is No. 38 overall, and they’d get Kansas City’s third-rounder back in the deal along with Sneed. Sounds like a nice deal for them, but not one the Chiefs would likely give a whole lot of thought to since it would involve them attaching an asset.
4. New England Patriots
The Patriots are another on the list of teams Dragon mentioned as having shown interest in Sneed. Like the Titans, they can try to woo whoever they’d like to with plenty of cap space to burn. But beyond the money, there’s a whole lot of unknown in New England as Jerod Mayo replaces Bill Belichick. The overall sales pitch players of Sneed’s ilk seems sure to be lacking, and they are not close to being a championship contender again.
Once upon a time, not really so long ago, players would have taken less money for a chance to win a ring (or multiple rings) in New England. That time has passed, and it seems unlikely Sneed would be open to be being traded there or entertaining an offer sheet should they want to give him one.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars seem set to remodel their secondary a bit, letting cornerback Darious Williams and safety Rayshawn Jenkins before free agency starts. Cornerback now arguably stands as their biggest offseason need, and Sneed is the best of the available bunch.
It would not appear to be much trouble for Jacksonville to get Sneed, in terms of parting with the required draft pick in a trade. But the bigger issue stands to be how they’re allocating fairly limited cap dollars. They could more easily sign a veteran a notch below Sneed, then take one of the top corners from a deep draft class at the position with the 17th overall pick in April’s draft.
2. Atlanta Falcons
Aside from A.J. Terrell, the Falcons are lacking at cornerback. And they have the cap space ($37.26 million as of Sunday afternoon) to absorb the $19.8 million franchise tag for Sneed and subsequently work on a multi-year deal.
But it appears the Falcons are a significant suitor for Kirk Cousins, as they look to address the quarterback position and not go half-way to doing it. That will eat up a lot of cap room, and to have competence at the most important position on the field it might just be worth it.
The Falcons are an easy potential suitor for Sneed, but how significant they’ll ultimately be is a big question.
1. Indianapolis Colts
The Colts are another of the seven total teams with interest in Sneed (including the Lions) Dragon mentioned in his report, and they look like the most dangerous to Detroit’s potential pursuit. According to Destin Adams of AtoZ Sports, a team source was clear about how highly they think of the Chiefs’ cornerback.
“If he (Sneed) hit free agency, he would have been our top priority at CB and free agent altogether to pursue.”
The Colts second and third-round picks this year (No. 46 and No. 82 overall respectively), are better than the Lions’ second round pick (No. 61) and their own third-rounder (No. 92).
The differentiators could be the third-round pick the Lions got from the Vikings in the T.J. Hockenson trade (No. 73 overall), in a potential package of picks to offer for Sneed, and their overall appeal as being closer to winning a Super Bowl than the Colts are.
Of course the Lions could render the Colts and every other potential Sneed suitor moot by going all-in with a trade offer.
If Sneed is available, and there is some level of “if” involved at this point, the Lions should not lose out on him because they were unwilling to do whatever it took to get him. The competition will be heavy, but they can make a strong case they are the best new spot for him as Sneed considers those options.
