Six potential landing spots for Charvarius Ward in free agency

Kansas City Chiefs

While Ward is bound to make more money away from Kansas City, it’s also quite possible that some of the built-in intangibles could keep the cornerback in-house.

Most players work their whole lives for the dream of a payday in the open market known as NFL free agency. That said, Ward has enjoyed the spoils of playing for one of the NFL’s most successful and stable franchises for almost the entirety of his NFL career (save for a few months with the Cowboys). There’s something to be said about knowing others and being known, and there’s no learning curve or familial move or other such disruptions if he stays with Kansas City.

With the Chiefs, Ward also has a clear home on the field. He’s a known quantity with whom the organization wouldn’t have to guess or predict what he might bring to the field. He’s a sticky corner (sometimes overly so) who isn’t afraid of playing physically or stepping up to play the run. While he’s been exposed on some deep routes lately, some offseason work in the secondary should bring better safety help to help that particular issue.

The main problem here is knowing how little the Chiefs typically spend on corners. Bashaud Breeland was brought back on a couple of one-year deals but those were cheap and he was left outside when his price went to $4 million this last year. Given Ward’s youth and the life-altering money he can likely make on the open market, it’s hard to see the Chiefs changing ways.

Then again, if they know and like what they have in Ward, the Chiefs could change their approach and bring him back for another year or three. Right now, the only corners due back in 2022 are Rashad Fenton, L’Jarius Sneed, and Deandre Baker. That’s a thin unit that means the Chiefs will have to sign someone. Might as well be Ward, right?