The Kansas City Chiefs are on the lookout for some help at the wide receiver position this offseason. After revamping their wide receiver group last year following the trade of Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins, the team may have to do it once again this year.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, who signed a one-year deal with Kansas City as a free agent in 2022, had a nice bounce-back season, and turned it into a three-year deal with the New England Patriots. With him no longer in the mix, Skyy Moore is set to see a larger role and is someone head coach Andy Reid has said needs to step up in 2023.
In addition to Moore, the Chiefs are also expecting Kadarius Toney to get things on track. Toney was acquired from the New York Giants ahead of the trade deadline in November and has some elite athleticism that Reid and his offensive staff will look to take full advantage of.
While the Chiefs are confident that both young players will get on track this season, bringing in another established veteran wouldn’t be the worst idea. Having another reliable player to rely on in the passing game to take pressure off of Travis Kelce would be ideal.
Pinpointing that player is easier said than done. An already thin free-agent class is short on options with so many deals already getting done. As an alternative, Kansas City could turn to the trade market.
Veteran DeAndre Hopkins has been linked to the Chiefs, but the high asking price of the Arizona Cardinals and Hopkins’ huge contract are major hurdles to overcome. Instead, the team could pivot to someone such as Allen Robinson.
Robinson signed a three-year deal with the Los Angeles Rams last offseason, but his addition was a bust. He never got on the same page with Matthew Stafford and wasn’t very impactful. The Rams are now looking to move him, and the Chiefs could make for a good landing spot.
What could it cost the Chiefs to acquire Robinson from the Rams? Depending on when the deal gets done will impact the cost. Looking to clear as much cap space as possible, Los Angeles could wait until after the draft to get a deal done. If Robinson is traded post June 1, the Rams will save $10 million, compared to only $1.6 million if traded before then.
With that in mind, the Chiefs could offer the Rams a sixth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft after June 1. It would be a worthwhile risk for Kansas City, as offensive coordinator Matt Nagy was the head coach for Robinson the last time he produced at a high level in 2020 with the Chicago Bears.
For the Rams, they clear some much-needed cap space while also picking up a future draft pick. It would be hard for Los Angeles to get more than that, as Robinson has struggled the last few seasons and they have virtually no leverage when it comes to making a deal.
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