KC Chiefs trade idea: Titans linebacker Kamalei Correa would bring versatility to K.C.
By Scott Loring
Titans linebacker Kamalei Correa could make an ideal trade target for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Tennessee Titans linebacker Kamalei Correa has informed the franchise that he wants out after he was a healthy scratch for the team’s Week 5 match against the Buffalo Bills.
#Titans veteran LB Kamalei Correa has requested a trade after being inactive last night, sources tell me and @TomPelissero. Correa has played 39 snaps on defense this season and wants to get an opportunity elsewhere. Team has obliged and will release him if they can't trade him.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 14, 2020
The 26-year-old Correa has played for Tennessee and the Baltimore Ravens so far in his NFL career. He would provide good competition for a Chiefs linebacker group that could use an infusion of talent. Correa has a good plan in his pass rush and plays well in the clutch. He started all three postseason games for the Titans in 2019, in which he sacked both Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes.
The 6’3″ 240 lb. linebacker has played just 39 snaps for the Titans this season after he re-signed a one-year, $2.25 million contract back in April. Tennessee has stated that they will search for a trade partner, but the team will release Correa if they cannot find a trade that will accomodate him.
If Chiefs general manager Brett Veach has an interest in Correa, he may have a hard time getting the Titans to engage. As the reigning conference champions, Kansas City might be the last place that Tennessee wants to look when trying to trade away a young, hungry defender. Veach also has one less trade chip available, having traded away his 2021 sixth-rounder during the 2020 draft in order to select Bopete Keyes.
Veach could play it safe and wait for the Titans to release Correa, but there’s no shortage of evidence to tell us that when Veach wants a player, he goes out and gets him. The Chiefs have more than enough cap space in 2020 to make the trade if they want, but it is most likely that the rest of the NFL waits this one out and Correa hits the free agent market.
The Titans acquired Correa from the Ravens before the 2018 season in exchange for a sixth-round pick. Correa played collegiately at Boise State before he became a second-round pick of the Ravens in 2016. Correa played all over the front seven while in college, lining up at linebacker, defensive end, and defensive tackle for the Broncos.
That versatility can come in handy for a Chiefs unit that could use one more pass rusher. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnoulo has shown a propensity to blitz his linebackers quite a bit in 2020, most frequently with Ben Niemann, the player who could stand to lose the most playing time if the Chiefs acquired Correa.