With the Chiefs trading away Marcus Peters this past offseason, it could lead to a similar result after the franchise once traded away Jared Allen.
When the Kansas City Chiefs traded away cornerback Marcus Peters to the Los Angeles Rams during the offseason, many were flabbergasted.
Months later, the trade has recently been brought up by some Chiefs fans this preseason during the struggles of new cornerback David Amerson. The position looks thin in talent and is made worse by Amerson’s forgettable preseason play.
But the concern with trading away an elite player goes beyond how thin the position group is. Let’s look back a decade..
Despite starting the 2007 season with a two-game suspension, defensive end Jared Allen led the league in sacks with 14.5. The Chiefs traded Allen to Minnesota in the 2008 offseason, which hurt the Chiefs drastically that year. Kansas City’s defense only mustered 10 sacks, the fewest sack total by a team in NFL history after trading away its reigning single-season sack champion.
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Could the Chiefs see a similar situation after the Peters trade? Don’t be surprised if it happens.
Peters led the team in interceptions with five in 2017. Cornerback Terrance Mitchell was behind Peters with four picks as safety Ron Parker has two. Those were the only players on Kansas City’s defense with multiple interceptions in 2017, and they all play elsewhere now.
Ever since Peters was drafted in 2015, he’s recorded 21 interceptions, including the playoffs. That is the most by any defensive player since 2015.
Yes, Eric Berry is returning. As great of a safety he is, he’s never had more than four interceptions in a single season. The only returning interceptors for the Chiefs are Terrance Smith, Dan Sorensen and Chris Jones, each with one.
According to NFL.com, the 1982 Houston Oilers have the fewest interceptions with just three during their 1-8 record. The shortened season was due to a players’ strike. As far as a 16-game schedule goes, the Lions have the fewest interceptions with four from their 0-16 season in 2008.
Outside of Berry and new cornerback Kendall Fuller, it is hard to see who the Chiefs could rely on to help the defense collect interceptions. After tying ninth with Pittsburgh and Washington with 16 interceptions last year, Kansas City’s total is likely to go down and possibly finish among the bottom half of the league.
This Chiefs defense will likely surpass Detroit’s record low of four interceptions. However, it might not get much better than that.