The NFL trade deadline nearly came and went without an announced deal featuring the Kansas City Chiefs. Fortunately, with 30 minutes left on the clock Tuesday afternoon, the Chiefs and Indianapolis Colts announced the terms of a deal for wide receiver Josh Downs. Indy sent back a 2027 7th-round pick as well in exchange for 4th- and 5th-round choices from K.C. in the same draft class.
In the aftermath of the deadline, however, reports and rumors link the Chiefs to other irons in the proverbial fire. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN detailed a few possibilities that are important to highlight.
Cornerback interest?
Perhaps the most interesting detail offered by Fowler was that the Chiefs were looking around for cornerback help as well. Nothing further was offered, so it’s impossible to know how intense Brett Veach’s search was or even what kind of corner he was intrigued by.
The Chiefs have watched Mansoor Delane drift in and out of the starting lineup with shoulder ailments. Perhaps Veach was scouring for some boundary help. L’Jarius Sneed is also on injured reserve, so maybe the Chiefs wanted to bolster slot corner with Chris Roland-Wallace and Jadon Canady as the primary options. Either way, it’s possible the Chiefs keep an eye on the free-agent market for veteran help as the season progresses if they feel insecure about their depth chart.
The chase included Brian Thomas Jr.
Fowler said the Chiefs were told “no” on a Brian Thomas Jr. inquiry. For a while, rumors had the Jaguars interested in trading away their former first-round pick for the right price, and the assumption was that K.C. would have to pay a tax to get him due to being a fellow AFC contender. But as the deadline came into view, the clear message from Jacksonville was that Thomas wasn’t going anywhere for any price. And that rumor proved true—meaning it wasn’t just an anti-Chiefs decision.
Steelers were in on Josh Downs
According to Fowler, the Colts were intent on keeping the lines open for any possible last-minute bidding changes before trading Downs and the Pittsburgh Steelers were also eyeing the Colts wideout. However, he says Pittsburgh’s lack of a fourth-round choice available to trade kept them from being able to trump the Chiefs’ offer.
It seems that the Colts weren’t able to procure any day-two selection for Downs, which is interesting because Pittsburgh did have two of those available. They have their own third-round pick as well as the Dallas Cowboys’ due to the trade of offensive tackle Broderick Jones. But the Steelers also sent away their own fourth-round choice in that deal, which kept them from being able to sweeten the pot enough to get the best of the Chiefs.
As for K.C., they also have two third-round picks, but they were able to get Downs without using one. The extra for the ’27 draft in that round is the final pick remaining in the Trent McDuffie blockbuster with the L.A. Rams.
Were the Chiefs in on a tackle?
The Chiefs aren’t specifically mentioned in ESPN’s round-up of deadine chatter when mentioning the possibility of a trade for Houston Texans tackle Braden Smith. Fowler simply says a “handful of teams showed interest in a potential deal, but nothing materialized.” However, given the lack of proven talent at tackle at this point, with Josh Simmons on injured reserve and Jaylon Moore dealing with an ankle injury shortly after spending time in the concussion protocol, it’s hard to imagine that Veach wasn’t kicking the tires on further tackle help.
The Chiefs have Joshua Ezeudu as Moore’s primary backup. Kahlil Benson has taken over the left tackle spot since Week 1. But the only backup on the roster is Diego Pounds, who is an undrafted free agent just like Benson. Not to mention, Ezeudu, while a veteran, just joined the team in late August via a preseason trade. The Texans, with very good tackle depth, were an obvious place to look for teams needing help up front.
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