The Kansas City Chiefs are one of the most popular teams in the NFL. Not only have they won three of the past five Super Bowls, but they have won two of them in a row and have a chance to become the first team in NFL history to win it in three consecutive seasons. Obviously, winning consistently is going to bring a team a great deal of positive attention and fans, and no team has won more in recent years than Kansas City.
Of course, the Chiefs gained a great deal more fans last season due to All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce dating 14-time Grammy Award winner Taylor Swift. Her own fanbase, known as Swifties, adopted the Chiefs as their favorite team, which led to both the organization and NFL making hundreds of millions of dollars more than they might have due to increased viewership.
One person, however, is not feeling so great about the team.
Former Kansas City Chiefs Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed Has Bitter Feelings Over Being Traded
Earlier this offseason, the Chiefs traded former fourth-round pick L’Jarius Sneed to the Tennessee Titans for a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2024 seventh-round pick swap. The move was made for the simple reason that Kansas City did not want to pay Sneed what he is worth.
In an interview on “The Pivot” podcast, Sneed revealed that being traded away from the Chiefs left him bitter:
“Yeah. Man, I didn’t talk to them. I was upset. Man, I was upset. Kansas [City], you know, that’s like my first love. So many ways, it showed me how to be a champion. Gave me two rings. And, you know, it’s just [that] I was bitter, you know, I was angry because I wanted to stay. And that environment around everybody I was used to. But, you know, it’s God’s plan.”
Instead of signing Sneed to an extension, the Chiefs have given massive contracts to Chris Jones (last season) and Creed Humphry.
Former Kansas City Chiefs Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed Got a Massive Contract Extension from the Tennessee Titans
Soon after being traded to the Titans, Sneed was given a four-year $76.4 million contract extension with $44 million of it guaranteed. His $19.1 million average annual salary is the ninth highest among NFL cornerbacks.
That is certainly not a price that the Chiefs would have been able, or willing, to pay.
It is hard to argue with Kansas City’s reasoning, too. While Sneed was a crucial part of their defense and played a big role in each of their last two Super Bowl runs, the Chiefs have built a dynasty by making tough, and sometimes unpopular, decisions.
For example, Kansas City decided to trade All-Pro wide receiver Tyreek Hill instead of giving him a monster extension. While he has been collecting $30 million a year from the Miami Dolphins, the Chiefs have continued winning titles.
Former Kansas City Chiefs Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed Bullies Opposing Wide Receivers
As mentioned, the Chiefs have been fairly good at finding ways to win despite having to make hard decisions in regard to what players they keep. Kansas City fans will have to hope that the rest of their defensive backs will be able to instill the fear in opposing wide receivers that Sneed did.
Earlier this summer, Chiefs safety Justin Reid said of Sneed, “Sneed is a bully. Yeah, he’s a straight-up bully.” When asked about the hardest he has ever seen his former teammate bully an opponent, Reid said, “Aside from the Tyreek one? I mean, we were playing the Jets and Garrett Wilson didn’t get off the line of scrimmage. He quick-jammed him and literally ran him into the defensive line. He didn’t get one yard up the field and then he pushed him over to the ground.”
Now that Sneed is gone, Trent McDuffie will take over as the team’s top cornerback tasked with covering their opponents’ best wide receivers. An All-Pro himself, McDuffie may have jumped Sneed on the depth chart anyway, but Kansas City will still need to find someone within their ranks to bring the edge that their former cornerback did.
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