Patriots Predicted to Poach Chiefs Star

An NFL insider is predicting the New England Patriots to steal this star player away from the Kansas City Chiefs.
Nov 17, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith (65) leaves the field after warm ups before a game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
Nov 17, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith (65) leaves the field after warm ups before a game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
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The New England Patriots have an abundance of needs heading into the NFL offseason, and one of their most glaring holes is definitely along the offensive line.

The Patriots may very well have had the worst offensive line in football this year, but the good news is that New England has massive cap room to address the issue in free agency.

NFL insider James Palmer noted that landing offensive line help for Drake Maye may be even more important than finding him a top wide receiver, and he then proceeded to connect the Pats to Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith.

"Keep an eye on Trey Smith," Palmer said. "He's going to break the record for guard pay this offseason in free agency. ... Trey Smith is going to explode the market at the guard spot. Maybe it's in New England or something, on the interior trying to protect Drake Maye."

Smith, who played his collegiate football at the University of Tennessee, was seleted by the Chiefs in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

The 25-year-old was immediately named a starter during his rookie campaign and was very impressive, establishing himself as a lynchpin in the trenches for Kansas City.

This past season, Smith made his first Pro Bowl appearance, as he did not allow a single sack all year and was flagged for holding just twice. He also earned himself a more than solid 78.8 overall grade from Pro Football Focus.

Due to the Chiefs' rather shaky financial situation, they may not be able to retain Smith, who, as Palmer predicted, will surely break the bank this March.

But whether or not the star offensive lineman would want to head to a Patriots squad that just finished 4-13 after spending the first four years of his career with a perennial Super Bowl favorite remains to be seen.

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Matthew Schmidt
MATTHEW SCHMIDT

Matthew Schmidt is a sportswriter who covers NFL, MLB, NBA and college football and basketball. He has been writing professionally since 2011 and has also worked for Bleacher Report, FanRag Sports, ClutchPoints, NFLAnalysis.net and NBAAnalysis.net. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has a rather eclectic group of favorite teams: the Boston Celtics, New York Giants and Miami Marlins.