L’Jarius Sneed traded to Titans for ‘25 third-round pick, according to a report

Kansas City selected Sneed in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

The Kansas City Chiefs have traded cornerback L’Jarius Sneed to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The teams will also swap seventh-round picks in this year’s draft.

The news was first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter late Saturday night.

Sneed, 27, was selected by the Chiefs out of Lousiana Tech in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. A safety in college, Sneed showcased his inside-outside versatility in Kansas City, first making his name as a slot cornerback before defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo deployed him everywhere.

Eventually, Spagnuolo decided to assign the 6-foot-1, 192-pound cornerback to the opposition’s best weapon, and Sneed excelled in that role, curbing the likes of Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson and Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs.

Kansas City placed the franchise tag on Sneed this past offseason, and if he had played on the tag, he would have made $19.8 million. Instead, he stands to make much more as a member of the Titans, according to Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz.

Those numbers include $19 million annually over four years and $55 million guaranteed. For the Chiefs, they now have $26.6 million worth of cap space for the 2024 season.

Entering the offseason, it always seemed like a case of keeping defensive tackle Chris Jones or Sneed, and general manager Brett Veach made his choice when he signed Jones to a five-year contract extension. Flexibility has always been the keyword for Veach, who now has it for the three-peat try.

Without Sneed, Kansas City’s cornerback room now consists of Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson, Joshua Willams, Nazeeh Johnson, Nic Jones, and Ekow Boye-Dowe, among others. Currently, McDuffie and Watson should be considered the Chiefs’ starters at cornerback.

Kansas City has seven picks ahead in the 2024 NFL draft, with their top needs now being offensive tackle… and cornerback.

In four years with the Chiefs, Sneed appeared in 57 games (starting 53), recording 303 tackles (223), 40 passes defensed and 10 interceptions. He also displayed a knack for getting to the quarterback when called upon, recording 5.6 sacks and 13 quarterback hits.

The Chiefs won’t play the Titans in 2024 unless they match up in the postseason.