Emmanuel Ogbah trade wouldn’t cost or bring much for Chiefs
By Matt Conner
If you’re excited by Emmanuel Ogbah trade rumors, then it means you’re really, really into adding defensive line depth for the Chiefs.
On Monday, Adam Schefter reported that defensive lineman Emmanuel Ogbah would not be reporting to the Cleveland Browns. The reason is simple: Ogbah isn’t expected to play this year for the Browns. There’s no reason to meet teammates you won’t be playing alongside.
The Browns have been shopping Ogbah for some time—ever since they acquired Olivier Vernon from the New York Giants in an offseason trade. Vernon gives the Browns much more pass rushing production across from Myles Garrett (as well as a more well-rounded player). Now that real football activities are happening (e.g. the Browns coming together under new head coach Freddie Kitchens this week), Ogbah is biding his time.
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At this point, general manager John Dorsey is hoping for the best possible return for Ogbah but he’s unlikely to find anything of substance at this point. Ogbah comes with a bit of fanfare as an early second round pick from the 2016 NFL Draft (in fact, he was 32nd overall). He’s also only 25-years-old, so there’s some hope there for improvement if fans of his new team want reason for hope.
Given the defensive makeover being undertaken by the Chiefs, Ogbah could be an exciting name for Chiefs fans, but it’s important to know why Dorsey felt he needed to trade for an upgrade. Ogbah has averaged just over four sacks over his first three seasons in the NFL. Pro Football Focus has graded Ogbah poorly as a pass rusher every year and last year was especially inefficient.
"Rushing the passer a career-high 496 times this past season, he ranked dead last in pass-rush win percentage (7.5%) among the 61 NFL edge defenders with at least 300 pass-rushes on the year."
Obgah even struggled last year as a run defender, which is his primary strength, in a starting role (PFF ranked him No. 30 out of 61 overall).
That’s not to say that Ogbah has zero value at all, but rather that he’s not going to be the starting edge across from Alex Okafor that Steve Spagnuolo is looking for. Breeland Speaks and Tanoh Kpassagnon are already vying for snaps in addition to whatever expected competition the Chiefs will draft in a few weeks.
Given that he will be a rotational body, Ogbah does bring in a young player who could benefit from different coaching and/or a change of scenery. During the draft, he drew comparisons to Bud Dupree and Charles Johnson, so perhaps there’s a real ceiling there as a disruptor that has yet to break out. Certainly Chiefs fans have seen first-hand how some pass rushers are slower to develop.
I’m not going to die on Emmanuel Ogbah Hill. I know he didn’t have many sacks or pressures. But he batted 14 passes in 24 games the last 2 years. Seems like that should be considered disruption. Kills a play more so than many pressures. I don’t understand the urgency to dump him
— Justin (@afc2nfc) April 1, 2019
Some more good news can be found in the price of Ogbah—namely that he’s a $2 million cap hit in 2019. That’s the same price as Jordan Lucas. For a veteran edge player who would upgrade the rotation with potential for more, that’s a very palatable price.
Next. The Chiefs salary cap gives them a lot of options. dark
If the Chiefs felt like parting with a day three pick, Ogbah might make sense as a veteran import. However the price needs to be that low and any expectations should be measured, as any trade for Ogbah will be a minor deal within the larger picture of the entire offseason.