The Chiefs' secondary unit was among the best in the NFL this past season. Kansas City allowed the fourth-fewest passing yards and the fourth-fewest touchdowns on their way to helping Steve Spagnuolo’s group finish with the second-fewest points allowed.
So when the Chiefs traded away star cornerback L'Jarius Sneed, there was a huge concern that the secondary would drop off considerably. Not so fast, says TouchdownWire's Doug Farrar. He ranked two Chiefs cornerbacks in his list of the top-13 heading into 2024: Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson. Naturally, Sneed ranked No. 1 on the list.
McDuffie was already a stud even when Sneed was on the roster, but Watson has an opportunity to expand on his limited experience. Watson, a 2022 seventh-rounder, is most-remembered for his 99-yard pick-six against the Chargers in only his second NFL game. He's only started eight games in his NFL career and that has been his only interception in 32 games.
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Even still, Farrar ranked Watson No. 10 on his list — ahead of McDuffie:
In his second NFL season, Watson lined up in press on 229 of his 540 reps — that 42.4% rate for such a young player is unusual, and tells you just how confident Spags is in Watson’s press abilities. Last season, Watson allowed 17 catches in 34 press targets for 5.5 yards per catch, two explosive plays, one touchdown, and no interceptions — but quite a few pass breakups. As is the case with Trent McDuffie, Watson is a very good press cornerback with the arrow pointing straight up for the future.
McDuffie, meanwhile, finished No. 13 on Farrar's list. The Chiefs' No. 21 overall pick in 2022 has started all 27 career games, although he's yet to record an interception. He's registered 14 defended passes, though, and allowed less than 11 yards per target in each of his first three NFL seasons. McDuffie also made first-team All-Pro in 2023 after he allowed a 65.8% completion percentage and a 94.4 quarterback rating.
Another Chiefs cornerback who benefited from Steve Spagnuolo’s man/press/match concepts last season was McDuffie, the 2022 first-round pick out of Washington, and the team’s heir apparent press dominator now that L’Jarius Sneed has moved on. When deciding to give a massive new contract to either Sneed or Chris Jones, one can imagine Spags and general manager Brett Veach thinking that McDuffie was ready for the jump, while the team had no approximate replacement for Jones.
The Chiefs had at least one cornerback in press coverage on 80% of their snaps last season, second-highest in the league behind the Falcons, and the more McDuffie has played press, the better he’s gotten at it. Last season, he pressed on 244 of his 1,266 reps, and he allowed 29 catches on 38 press targets for 10.5 yards per catch, five explosive plays, four touchdowns, and no interceptions.
Not the best numbers on this list, but McDuffie developed as a press defender throughout his second NFL season, and by the time Super Bowl LVIII rolled around, he may have been the best press guy on the field. The Chiefs are certainly betting that it’s his time to shine.
The presence of Watson and McDuffie is likely why the Chiefs waited until late in the third day of the 2024 NFL Draft to take a cornerback. Joshua Williams plans to join Watson and McDuffie as the team's starting cornerbacks, but sixth-rounder Kamal Hadden should be the next man up in the secondary for KC.
