The Tennessee Titans have fielded one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL over the last few years.
They solved that problem in a big way early during the 2024 offseason. Today, we’ll revisit the trade that sent lockdown cornerback L’Jarius Sneed to Nashville, and how it affects the two-time defending champions, the Kansas City Chiefs.
L’Jarius Sneed Trade Details
The Chiefs traded Sneed to the Titans on March 29th to conclude what had been a months-long game of chicken between the Pro Bowl-caliber cornerback and the defending champs.
The full details of the trade can be found here.
The Chiefs received:
- 2025 third-round pick
- 221st overall pick (seventh round)
The Titans received:
- CB, L’Jarius Sneed
- 252nd overall Pick (seventh round)
The big reason why this trade even unfolded was because Sneed was looking for a contract extension as he entered the final year of his rookie deal. Kansas City, with many other stars to pay including All-Pro Chris Jones, opted to keep Jones over Sneed.
Now, the Titans have bolstered their cornerback room with one of the best cover men in the league.
Players Involved in the Sneed Trade
There were no additional veteran players included in the Sneed trade on either side outside of the cornerback. The significant draft capital included in the trade included a 2025 draft pick, so it remains to be seen how valuable that selection will prove to be over time.
However, it’s the draft capital generated by the pick swaps that makes this trade exciting.
Kansas City used the 221st overall pick in a package deal to move up to the 28th overall selection and nab Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy. The Titans, meanwhile selected Michigan edge rusher Jaylen Harrell with their seventh-round pick from the Chiefs.
The full trade, then, means the Chiefs added Worthy and a third-round pick in 2025 for Sneed and Harrell alone.
Who Won the Sneed Trade?
When this trade was first announced, it was pretty obvious that while the Chiefs were still expected to be fine without Sneed, they lost the trade. The Titans picked up a top player at the position, while also keeping most of their early draft capital.
Then the 2024 NFL Draft happened.
The fact that the Chiefs were able to use the trade they received from Tennessee as part of a package to move up in the first round to select a dynamic receiver in Worthy means the trade is far more impactful than merely losing a top corner.
Making matters easier for Kansas City is the fact that Trent McDuffie is an All-Pro slot corner and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is still at the helm of the entire unit.
So long as those two pieces remain unchanged, the fact that Kansas City managed to make a significant upgrade to its offense while staying well within the margins of the salary cap means the Chiefs are going to continue to be good for a very long time.
Yes, even if the move was a great one for the Titans’ defense.