Should KC Chiefs Be Interested in Trading for Danielle Hunter?
In this story:
The 2023 NFL offseason rolls on with teams either already having reached or soon getting to the mandatory minicamp stage of their respective programs. Clubs around the league now have the first several waves of free agency and the 2023 NFL Draft in the rearview mirror and are moving forward with loaded 90-man rosters, but that doesn't mean additional shuffling isn't on the horizon.
On Wednesday, it was reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network that the Minnesota Vikings are receiving calls regarding trade interest for pass-rusher Danielle Hunter. Rapoport notes that "pretty serious" interest is there from teams and rumors surrounding a possible Hunter trade have been swirling for months. The 28-year-old defensive end's long-term contract situation with Minnesota is a major driving force here, but the team's perspective on its contention timeline and Hunter's stature as a player are also worth noting.
In the event that there becomes a 'Hunter sweepstakes' of sorts, should the Kansas City Chiefs make a push?
The answer is complicated. On one hand, Hunter is still in his athletic prime and generally fits the measurement thresholds that defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo typically prefers. Additionally, he's coming off a 10.5-sack 2022 season and has made the Pro Bowl in three of his last four seasons while playing all of the Vikings' regular-season games in those same Pro Bowl years. His 87.1 Pro Football Focus composite defense grade ranked seventh among all defensive ends last season, and his 80.1 pass-rush grade finished just outside the top 15. He can still absolutely help a team's defensive line in a major way.
On top of that, Hunter's 2023 salary cap number in terms of yearly cash checks in at a very reasonable $5.5 million thanks to the maneuvering Minnesota recently did. The flip side of that coin is that whoever acquires Hunter via trade would likely have to extend him at a premium rate once he's brought in. The Chiefs likely can't afford that but if they somehow swung a trade and decided just to keep Hunter for one season without upsetting the player, that changes the dynamic of things and would make the trade worth it.
The other element that must be considered is Kansas City's current depth at the defensive end spot. Not only are Felix Anudike-Uzomah and George Karlaftis two very recent first-round investments, but Mike Danna and Charles Omenihu also factor into the club's rotation at the position. There's probably room for one more depth piece — some floated around Frank Clark's name on this very site before he signed with the Denver Broncos — but a player of Hunter's caliber would eat into everyone's snaps. At this stage in his career, Hunter is still a high-level player and would assume a starting role. The cost-benefit analysis of development versus win-now impact comes into play as something that would need to be considered if a trade occurred.
All of this is said without even mentioning the ongoing saga with DeAndre Hopkins's current free agency and the Chiefs being pegged as a team to take seriously in that race. If that falls through and additional cap space is still created via a Chris Jones extension later this summer, then it may be worth it for Kansas City to consider going after Hunter in a trade. The team seems happy with what it currently has, though, and giving up too much in a bidding war for a presumed one-year rental could be costly. General manager Brett Veach would be wise to keep tabs on Hunter, although that might be the extent of things depending on how the rest of the offseason unfolds.
