Chiefs rumors: Steelers emerge as suitor for L'Jarius Sneed

The Kansas City Chiefs are under the gun coming into another week of the NFL preseason. On Tuesday, the NFL's deadline to apply the franchise tag will come and go and the team is reportedly set to use it on cornerback L'Jarius Sneed. But that's when things could get interesting.

At the present time, rumors say the Chiefs are laser-focused on locking up defensive tackle Chris Jones with the hopes of also getting something done in short order with Sneed as well. But in the instance that they can't make that happen, the Chiefs have also let Sneed know they could tag-and-trade him to be able to retain value.

In preparation for such a moment, the Chiefs have reportedly given Sneed permission to seek a trade. One team that has emerged as a rumored suitor is the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Mike Tomlin's team is reportedly interested in adding L'Jarius Sneed to the team's secondary.

According to Nick Farabaugh of Steelers Now, a source has indicated that the Steelers are interested in potentially acquiring Sneed with the hopes of adding the lockdown corner to a defensive unit that could use a physical presence.

Remember the Steelers have made this sort of deal in the past when they sent an early pick to the Miami Dolphins to acquire Minkah Fitzpatrick back in 2019. Of course, it helped that Fitzpatrick had three years of cost control left on his rookie deal, but it still goes to show that Pittsburgh isn't afraid to chase a cornerstone in the secondary.

While the Chiefs would undoubtedly rather send Sneed to the NFC instead of keeping him closer in the AFC, the truth is that they might lack the leverage to make a dream deal. After all, any interested team must cough up the funds for a long-term extension as well as the draft assets to satisfy the Chiefs.

Sneed enjoyed a banner season last year with the Chiefs and gained a league-wide reputation as one of the NFL's most physical corners.