It’s not often you see superstar players who are among the best at their position, traded away from Super Bowl contenders. The Kansas City Chiefs have now done that twice.
First, a few seasons ago, they traded away wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins. He was among the best receivers in the league at the time, and you could even make a case that he was the best receiver in the league. On Wednesday, they traded away cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams. McDuffie is one of the elite cornerbacks in the league, and a guy who can play on the boundary and in the slot.
Now, they have to follow the same trend and experience the same Déjà Vu moment they had with Hill.
What happened the last time the Chiefs traded a star, has to happen again
When the Chiefs traded away Hill, they received a 2022 1st-round pick (No. 29, used to draft Trent McDuffie), a 2022 2nd-round pick (No. 50, later traded), a 2022 4th-round pick, a 2023 4th-round pick (Used in a package for Rashee Rice), and a 2023 6th-round pick. This trade isn’t exactly comparable to what they just got for McDuffie, because it’s way more, but it’s similar in that KC went on to trade Hill after he wanted an extension.
The Chiefs used those picks to draft guys like McDuffie and then win a Super Bowl that same season. This time, the Chiefs have to do the same thing. They have to use these draft picks to build a team and help retool it around Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid to get back to the Super Bowl.
They have proved once before that they don’t need a superstar to win—they did that with Hill. They can do it again, this time showing they don’t need McDuffie. However, they will certainly miss him.
Justin Churchill covers the Oklahoma Sooners and the Las Vegas Raiders for the A to Z Sports trending and breaking news team.