Watching the Super Bowl without the Kansas City Chiefs was a bizarre experience after finishing as the champion or runner-up in five of the six previous seasons. Sitting on the sidelines of football's biggest motivation should motivate the Chiefs moving forward, though, especially now that the offseason is officially underway.
While general manager Brett Veach prepares to navigate the coming months, several Chiefs' futures with the franchise are up in the air. That includes cornerback Trent McDuffie, who may have already played his final game with Kansas City, whether fans realized it at the time or not.
Trent McDuffie's Time with Chiefs Might Be Nearing the End
The upcoming offseason is a big one for McDuffie, who's entering the final year of his rookie contract and eligible for an extension. There's a chance that he'll be looking to be extended with a deal that includes a significant raise from the $13.6 million cap hit, via Spotrac, he's set to carry next season.
Having said that, the Chiefs aren't guaranteed to be a Super Bowl threat after last year's disappointing results, especially when also considering Patrick Mahomes' uncertain recovery timeline. Throw in the fact that they currently have the least amount of cap space in the NFL, and it's easy to see why the Chiefs might not want to rush to extend McDuffie.
It doesn't help that McDuffie didn't exactly give Veach & Co. many reasons to extend him with his recent play. Although Pro Football Focus grades don't tell a complete story, the 25-year-old CB's 74.7 coverage grade was a new career-low mark, as he allowed 37 completions for 342 yards, three touchdowns, and a 94.7 passer rating while only intercepting one pass.
If McDuffie wants to get paid like a No. 1 cornerback, he needs to do a better job of disrupting plays and coming down with picks. His inability to consistently do so is why the Chiefs might not be open to giving him another year to prove himself, which is where a potential trade could make sense.
After all, trading McDuffie wouldn't result in any dead money, according to Spotrac, meaning the Chiefs would have an additional $13.6 million in cap space to play with. That's a significant amount of money that can help with Kansas City's cap crunch, especially if Veach trims even more contracts from the books with other trades and cuts.
McDuffie might have what it takes to be a legitimate CB1 one day, but the Chiefs' cap situation makes the idea of a trade impossible to ignore. Assuming there are no immediate plans to extend him, Kansas City is better off trying to gain draft capital by moving McDuffie before the offseason is over, rather than risk losing him for nothing when he hits free agency in 2027.