The Kansas City Chiefs are looking for pass rusher supplements as part of their eternal quest to dominate the AFC, which could lead to them examining the trade market for impending free agents who can be acquired without breaking the proverbial bank.
The Miami Dolphins are clearly angling to be sellers as the deadline looms, and they should be willing to throw out former first-round pick Jaelan Phillips as a possible trade chip that contenders like the Chiefs may believe has some actual utility in their defense.
With the Phillips rumors only going to grow louder as the Dolphins continue to lose and the idea of starting this franchise from scratch with a new regime, the Chiefs need to make sure they are at the front of the line for Phillips' services before they end up getting beaten to the punch.
This Chiefs-Dolphins trade could be enough to acquire Jalen Phillips
The defensive line is a lot like a wide receiver room. Even if you have one standout player, a lack of depth can lead opposing teams to focus all of their attention on stopping the best individual that unit has to offer. This can be used to explain why Phillips has had such a decline in production.
While Kansas City doesn't have Denver's pass rush skill, which is why they are considering trading for Phillips in the first place, pairing him with the current group of linemen at their disposal and Steve Spagnuolo's creative mind should get him back on track.
Phillips, who is working his way back from a very serious injury, needs a career facelift after being mired in such ghoulish circumstances. Kansas City is trying to make the Super Bowl for the fourth year in a row, while the Dolphins seem destined to fire coach Mike McDaniel and GM Chris Grier.
As Miami kicks off a more earnest rebuild, look for them to be interested in a fourth-round pick for a player who will almost assuredly choose to leave in free agency. If the losing continues, they could be a very motivated seller.
Kansas City is not going to be able to beat up on the AFC this year due to how wide open the conference is this year, and acquiring a player like Phillips without surrendering any Top 100 capital could be one of the best ways for this defense to get back to their old form.