In a move that provides an anchor to the team's secondary for years to come, the Kansas City Chiefs have traded cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams, according to Ian Rapoport. In exchange, the Chiefs will receive the 29th pick in this year's draft, a fifth-round pick this year, a sixth-round pick this year, and a 2027 third-rounder, per Dianna Russini.
Since being drafted at No. 21 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft, McDuffie has developed into one of the league's elite cornerbacks. Over his four seasons with the Chiefs, he has accumulated 246 total tackles, 5.5 sacks, 8 forced fumbles, and 3 interceptions. His ability to provide a lockdown presence against an opposing team's top target has been pivotal for Steve Spagnuolo's championship defenses, making him a major factor in the team's ability to make three consecutive Super Bowl appearances (with two titles).
Chiefs trade Trent McDuffie to Rams
Unfortunately, this will hurt the Chiefs' defensive backfield in a big way. The Chiefs are also scheduled to potentially lose Jaylen Watson, Bryan Cook, Joshua Williams, and Nazeeh Johnson in free agency in 2026, so McDuffie is yet another piece on the move.
They'll have a lot of retooling to do in the offseason. This is a big gamble for Brett Veach and we'll have to see if it pays off for him. The Chiefs secondary struggled in 2025 and now they're losing their best weapon from that unit. It's a huge risk but one that Veach clearly feels is worth taking.
McDuffie was named a first-team All-Pro in just his second year in the NFL, which was his first fullly healthy season after missing five games due to injury in his rookie campaign. He was a second-team All-Pro in 2024 and returned in '25 for another strong year even as the Chiefs' fell to a 6-11 record.
The Chiefs brought back McDuffie in 2025 on the fifth-year player option provided to teams for all first-round picks.
The trade will send McDuffie to another contender in the Rams, who came up just short of reaching the Super Bowl this past season. As Rapoport noted, he'll also reunite with Jimmy Lake, who is the Rams assistant coach and coached McDuffie when he was at Washington.
McDuffie, who will turn 25 in September, was a first-team All-Pro in 2023 and a second-team All-Pro in 2024.