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L’Jarius Sneed To Leave Kansas City Chiefs? What Can Make The Defensive Asset Stay?

Published 02/14/2024, 12:01 AM EST

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USA Today via Reuters

The Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl, and the defense was a massive reason behind it. L’Jarius Sneed played a pivotal role in the Chiefs’ defensive strategy, and there is barely any doubt that the cornerback has become a hot target for this offseason. But will he leave a career with the Chiefs? Sneed has clarified his stance, now it all comes down to the fact if the Chiefs can afford him to stay.

Sneed is one of the lowest-paid CBs in the league, but that might change soon, considering the kind of season that led him to play in the Super Bowl. Now, many teams are already willing to sign him. But the Chiefs’ cornerback has something else on his mind as he prepares to become a free agent this off-season.

L’Jarius Sneed gives his take on the ongoing speculations

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Sneed’s four-year, $3.9M contract with the Chiefs ends this off-season. The CB will become an unrestricted free agent this year. Rumors are floating around that teams like the Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, and even the Las Vegas Raiders are eyeing L’Jarius Sneed and trying their best to get him to join their squad. However, the possibility of him leaving the Chiefs isn’t that bright.

Why? Because the Chiefs just won a Super Bowl. It wouldn’t be wise from a career standpoint to leave a team that just became a “dynasty.” There are CBs like the Packers’ Jaire Alexander, who signed a 4-year $84M extension back in May 2022. Hence, there is room for negotiation in his four-year contract.

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Sneed recently told ESPN, “I would love to be back. I don’t want to go anywhere. It’s part of the business.” He also mentioned that he wants to “put my [L’Jarius Sneed] best foot forward the entire year. It’s all in the mind. Block it out. Play ball.” 

Here it is also important to note that the Chiefs’ general manager, Brett Veach, is one step ahead in dealing with players like Sneed and Chris Jones.

Brett Veach has a vested interest in keeping the Chiefs’ defense alive

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Veach laid out his plans for handling the situation with Sneed’s contract. He mentioned earlier that the team had to “mend the fences” with Chris Jones when he demanded a contract extension and refused to practice early on in the season. Seeing an “iconic” player like Jones leave the team was hard for him.

USA Today via Reuters

“Sometimes I look at our situation, and I’m like, ‘I don’t know how we’re going to do this,’ but we usually work through things systematically and have a list of the priorities,” Veach mentioned and added, “Certainly, Chris and LJ are at the top of the list.” 

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However, Sneed told Forbes, “I don’t think about that,” and added, “I’m just playing ball right now. That will take care of itself when the time comes.” By the looks of it, he doesn’t want to leave the Chiefs, but this may be a Tyreek Hill-like situation, where he left the Chiefs for the Dolphins because of a more lucrative offer.

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Written by:

Abhinav Prakash

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Abhinav Prakash is an NFL Writer at EssentiallySports. He covers several aspects of the game, more specifically core sports events. Abhinav has also covered Taylor Swift in great detail, apart from these stalwarts.
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Edited by:

Shubhankar Adhikari