4. L’Jarius Sneed, cornerback
Third-year cornerback L’Jarius Sneed entered the NFL as a fourth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and it did not take long to figure out what the Kansas City scouting department saw in the former Louisiana Tech standout. As a rookie, Sneed earned himself six starts for the defending Super Bowl Champions before becoming the team’s full-time starter in 2021. In addition to five career interceptions, Sneed has also accounted for 15 pass breakups in just 21 career starts.
Now, Sneed enters year three as the team’s second-longest tenured cornerback (being Rashad Fenton), but being the most experienced in terms of career starts as a Chief. The team has already parted ways with veterans De’Andre Baker and Lonnie Johnson, demonstrating a significant amount of confidence not in Sneed to lead the cornerback group in 2022.
The Chiefs have seen flashes of absolute brilliance from L’Jarius Sneed over his first two seasons in the NFL. But, they’ve also seen signs of potential lapses in coverage and perhaps even some regression from year one to year two. Sneed has all the makings of being a superstar at a premier position, and year three will go a long way to determining whether or not he receives a long-term extension from Kansas City. Regardless, for a former 4th round selection, Sneed has already proven to be a reliable gem on the roster.