LA Chargers news: The Kansas City Chiefs could get even better with Jamal Adams.
The last LA Chargers news that any fan of the team wants to hear is that a team in the AFC West got better, particularly the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs are already the defending Super Bowl Champions, have dominated the head-to-head matchup in recent years and have shown no signs of slowing down.
Thankfully, the Chiefs have not really done anything this offseason that has made them a much better team. The problem is that nothing that happened that has made the team worse. We will not see that start to happen until they have to pay Patrick Mahomes.
However, the Chiefs could absolutely make a massive improvement to the roster, particularly on their weaker side, the defense. Kansas City is on the shortlist of teams that could potentially land one of the best young safeties in the league, Jamal Adams.
The New York Jets safety has requested a trade from the Jets and has supplied the team with a list of seven teams that he would welcome a trade to. ESPN’s Adam Schefter supplied the list, which included the Kansas City Chiefs alongside the Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.
LA Chargers News: Can the Kansas City Chiefs really trade for Jamal Adams?
The main reason why Adams has appeared to request a trade from the Jets is because he is not happy with contract negotiations with the team and is not getting the offer he wants on an extension. That is absolutely going to factor into the equation with his new team.
Adams’ rookie contract and fifth-year option run through the 2021 season but his focus seems to be getting a contract before the 2020 season even begins. He could threaten to hold out, as so many other NFL players have done, but with two years still on his deal, he does not have a ton of leverage in that regard.
MORE NEWS: Bolts have fourth-lowest odds to sign Colin Kaepernick
The one silver lining for Chargers fans is that the Kansas City Chiefs may not have the finances to take on Adams and give him an extension. Mahomes is due for an extension at the same time as Adams and is undoubtedly going to get a record-setting one, which will restrict the cap spending.
The team does have a combined $33 million freed up after this year alone in Sammy Watkins and Chris Jones but they have other positions that they are going to need to pay. Simply put, an Adams extension would be highly unlikely.
However, there is a reason that Kansas City is on his short list and maybe he would be willing to simply play through that rookie contract, get paid a decent amount on that fifth-year rookie option (which is worth $9.8 million in 2021) and compete for a Super Bowl.
I am fairly certain that Adams and his agent know that Mahomes is going to get a massive contract at the same time. Maybe, just maybe, this is the one instance where he values winning over a contract.
Now, could the Chiefs afford trading for Adams? Absolutely. The price will likely be lower than the two first-round picks, which has been speculated. Minkah Fitzpatrick (who is younger, albeit not as established at the time of the trade) was traded for just one first-round pick.
Knowing that Adams either wants a contract extension or that he is just a two-year rental, the price might not be that high. Now, it is going to take multiple picks, but I do think it is doable without two first-round picks.
I think the Chiefs could realistically get Adams for a 2021 first and second-round pick as well as a 2022 second and a 2023 third. That is a lot of draft capital for a two-year rental, but title windows are only so big and I can’t say I would be surprised if the Chiefs got a deal like this done.
Then the Chiefs would have one of the best safety pairings in the league with Tyrann Mathieu and Jamal Adams both patrolling the secondary. That is not the kind of Chargers news that fans want to hear.