Chiefs Couldn’t Trade McDuffie Without 4 NFL Dominoes

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Terry Fontenot and Raheem Morris are no longer in Atlanta. But the former Falcons general manager and head coach helped the Chiefs get better on Wednesday.

On Night 1 of last year’s draft, Atlanta got Les Snead on the phone to consummate a trade that allowed the Falcons to jump back into the first round and draft edge rusher James Pearce at No. 26 overall. That deal – which involved four selections – included Atlanta’s first-round pick in 2026.

pearc — Jan 4, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons linebacker James Pearce Jr. (27) rushes the passer against the New Orleans Saints in the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

When the Falcons finished 8-9, that future first-rounder became No. 13 overall in the 2026 draft. And that’s what allowed the Rams to become the prime suitor for Trent McDuffie on Wednesday. Snead kept the Falcons’ No. 13 pick and sent his own No. 29 selection to Kansas City, along with three other assets, to acquire the All-Pro cornerback.

Here are three more dominoes that fell prior to Wednesday, paving the way for the blockbuster bombshell.

mcduffi — Dec 7, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (12) catches a pass against Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie (22) during the first quarter at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Texans and Jets sign their cornerbacks

The top three cornerbacks, chronologically, in the 2022 draft were Derek Stingley to the Texans at No. 3 overall, Sauce Gardner to the Jets at No. 4, and McDuffie to the Chiefs at No. 21. And because they went in that order, not surprisingly, Stingley and Gardner beat McDuffie to signing second NFL contracts.

Stingley got three years and $90 million – with $89 million guaranteed – last March. Four months later on the eve of training camp, the Jets inked Gardner to a four-year, $120.4 million deal. In other words, in mid-July, the Chiefs had the framework for an extension with McDuffie – but Veach wanted more time.

stingley, worth — Jan 18, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) is tackled by Houston Texans cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. (24) during the second quarter of a 2025 AFC divisional round game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

“We had a lot of dialogue with Trent last spring, last summer,” Veach said last Tuesday at the combine. “And he's first out of the gate, I think, tomorrow. So, looking forward to getting with them. And, obviously, Trent’s a great player and we’ll see what we can do there. But certainly, would love to have Trent back and for the long-term.”

Instead, the Rams will sign McDuffie for the long-term and the Chiefs got a valuable haul of draft capital.

The Gardner trade

While Stingley went first in 2022, and signed the first contract extension in that group of cornerbacks, Gardner had the best numbers through November last season. He also was the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2022 and earned All-Pro honors each of his first two seasons.

All of that drove up the Colts’ price to acquire him in a monumental trade-deadline deal exactly four months prior to Wednesday’s McDuffie trade. On Nov. 4, Indianapolis got Gardner from the Jets for the Colts’ first-rounders in 2026 and 2027 as well as wide receiver Adonai Mitchell.

At that point in the season, the Chiefs were 5-4 – on their way to losing seven of the final eight games to finish 6-11. Veach knew he didn’t have McDuffie signed, and knew he didn’t have an ideal volume of draft picks. So, with Gardner’s trade setting a foundation for top-of-the-line cornerbacks, Veach wisely went to work on finding McDuffie suitors. The GM hit a grand slam on Wednesday.

Stafford’s announcement

With Travis Kelce only a short pass away from the podium, Matthew Stafford accepted the MVP award at NFL Honors on Feb. 5.

Then, flanked by his daughters on stage, the Rams’ quarterback offered this.

“I am so happy to have you at the games,” he said Thursday, referring to his girls, “on the sideline with me, and I can't wait for you to cheer me on next year when we're out there kicking ass. And so, I'll see you guys next year. Hopefully, I'm not at this event and we're getting ready for another game at SoFi.”

That game at SoFi Stadium is Super Bowl 61. But should Stafford, McDuffie and the Rams get there, they’ll need to first play the Chiefs in Los Angeles during the regular season. Whether Kelce is there remains uncertain.

What's certain, however, is Stafford will turn 39 days before that Super Bowl. He’s not expected to play much longer, and his unexpected announcement at NFL Honors fired up more than Sean McVay, Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams, in the audience with Kelce. It also lit a fire under Snead to improve the Rams’ cornerbacks while Stafford’s Super Bowl window remains open.

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