The Titans continue to load up this offseason.
Tennessee has landed star cornerback L'Jarius Sneed in a trade with the Chiefs, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported. Kansas City placed the franchise tag on Sneed at the start of the offseason, and he is expected to sign a new contract with the Titans.
Kansas City signed defensive tackle Chris Jones to a record-setting extension that made him the highest-paid defensive tackle in NFL history. With that deal and Patrick Mahomes' massive contract both on the books, Kansas City gave Sneed permission to seek a trade, as the team was unlikely to be able to give him the top-dollar deal he wanted.
Sneed landing in Tennessee continues what has been a productive offseason for the bottom-dwellers of the 2023 AFC South.
The Titans fired Mike Vrabel as head coach and brought in former Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan to lead the team. They have also signed wide receiver Calvin Ridley, running back Tony Pollard, cornerback Chidobe Awuzie and center Lloyd Cushenberry to deals this offseason.
Here's what it took for the Titans to land one of the NFL's best cornerbacks in Sneed from the reigning Super Bowl champions.
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L'Jarius Sneed trade details
Titans receive
- CB L'Jarius Sneed
- 2024 seventh-round pick
Chiefs receive
- 2024 seventh-round pick
- 2025 third-round pick
The biggest piece of the return for Kansas City is a 2025 third-round pick, according to Schefter. Additionally, the Chiefs and Titans will reportedly swap 2024 seventh-round picks.
The Titans have seventh-round picks at No. 221 (from Panthers), No. 227 and No. 242 (from Eagles). The Chiefs have the No. 252 pick.
The biggest winner of the trade is likely to be Sneed. The Titans are reportedly lining up to make him one of the highest-paid cornerbacks in the NFL, per Schefter, though the specifics of that deal have not yet been reported.
Sneed had an absurd 2023 that solidified his position among the best corners in the league. He did not allow a touchdown as the nearest defender on 90 targets, according to Next Gen Stats, which was the third-most targets in a full season without a touchdown allowed since 2016. PFF graded him as the 30th-best cornerback in the NFL.
The Chiefs appear to be set for the future at cornerback, however, as Trent McDuffie graded as PFF's No. 4 cornerback in 2023 and Joshua Williams came in at No. 25. Jaylen Watson was the No. 46 corner. There were 127 total qualifying cornerbacks.
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Highest-paid NFL cornerbacks in 2024
The numbers on Sneed's new deal are not in as of yet, but it's easy to see how he could wind up topping the market, at least in average annual value.
On the franchise tag, Sneed was already coming into the 2024 season as the third-highest paid corner in average annual value at $19.8 million, trailing Packers' Jaire Alexander ($21 million) and Browns' Denzel Ward ($20.1 million), according to Spotrac.
When it comes to value, the total value could wind up being quite. Here's where the field currently stands.
| Player | Team | Years | Guaranteed | AAV | Total value |
| Denzel Ward | Browns | 5 | $44.5 million | $20.1 million | $100.5 million |
| Marshon Lattimore | Saints | 5 | $34.1 million | $19.5 million | $97.6 million |
| Marlon Humphrey | Ravens | 5 | $40.3 million | $19.5 million | $97.5 million |
| Trevon Diggs | Cowboys | 5 | $33.3 million | $21.3 million | $97 million |
| Xavien Howard | Dolphins | 5 | $36.3 million | $18 million | $90 million |
| Jaire Alexander | Packers | 4 | $30 million | $21 million | $84 million |
| Jaylon Johnson | Bears | 4 | $43.8 million | $19 million | $76 million |
| Tre'Davious White | Bills | 4 | $36.7 million | $17.3 million | $69 million |
| Jalen Ramsey | Dolphins | 3 | $35.5 million | $18.3 million | $55 million |
| Jamel Dean | Buccaneers | 4 | $21.5 million | $13 million | $52 million |
