The Kansas City Chiefs had very little time to celebrate their Super Bowl victory before getting to work on repeating as champions. Some major decisions were made ahead of free agency as the team opted not to place the franchise tag on left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. and also released veteran Frank Clark.
That left Kansas City with two huge voids in their lineup. However, they quickly and aggressively filled them in free agency. Jawaan Taylor was signed away from the Jacksonville Jaguars with a four-year, $80 million deal. Charles Omenihu, formerly of the San Francisco 49ers, signed a two-year, $16 million deal.
There are certainly risks to both acquisitions. Taylor has played only 17 snaps at left tackle in his career after playing right tackle. Omenihu has been a rotational player throughout his career and will be tasked to take on a bigger role with the Chiefs.
The franchise is certainly confident in both players achieving that success, otherwise, they wouldn’t have signed them. Another area that could use some help this offseason is wide receiver.
The Chiefs did an excellent job reshaping the position last offseason after Tyreek Hill was traded to the Miami Dolphins. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Justin Watson were all signed to help fill the void. But, another overhaul could be in store.
Smith-Schuster has signed with the New England Patriots and Watson remains a free agent. If the Chiefs wanted to make a splash acquisition to replace him, one target could be DeAndre Hopkins of the Arizona Cardinals.
Arizona is looking to move the veteran as they are in a retooling phase. Bringing in a true No. 1 receiver to pair with tight end Travis Kelce, Valdes-Scantling and youngsters Skyy Moore and Kadarius Toney would be a scary group to try and slow down.
What could it cost to land Hopkins? The Cardinals are reportedly looking for an early Day 2 pick and either another selection or player. A suggested trade package would be the Chiefs sending out a second- and fourth-round pick, No. 63 and either No. 122 or 134.
That should be enough to appease the Cardinals, who will add some premium draft capital while also saving some money off the salary cap. Kansas City would reload their offense again, giving Patrick Mahomes another elite weapon to target in the passing game.
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