Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes have established a winning culture on the Kansas City Chiefs, leading the franchise to three Super Bowl victories in the last five NFL seasons. But unfortunately, the coach can’t make everyone happy.
Every offseason requires to make tough decisions, especially when you’re looking to improve a team that has already succeeded. And one of the sacrifices the Chiefs made this summer was trading cornerback L’Jarius Sneed to the Tennessee Titans.
Both Reid and Mahomes looked shocked with the news and even admitted how sad they were to see him go. But in an interview with The Pivot Podcast, Sneed admitted being upset with both of them at first.
“Yeah… I didn’t talk to them. I was upset,” Sneed said. “Man, I was upset. Kansas (City), you know, that’s like my first love. So many ways, it showed me how to be a champion. Gave me two rings. And, you know, it’s just (that) I was bitter, you know, I was angry because I wanted to stay. And that environment around everybody I was used to. But, you know, it’s God’s plan.”
Chiefs trading Sneed a painful but necessary sacrifice
Everyone in Kansas City will probably agree that trading Sneed was a tough decision to make. Not only did the 2x Super Bowl champ play a pivotal role in the defense, but he was also beloved in the locker room.
However, it’s also a decision that seemed inevitable due to salary cap reasons. The 27-year-old’s departure freed up nearly $20 million in cap space for the Chiefs moving forward.
And shortly after joining the Titans, Sneed signed a four-year, $76.4 million contract extension in Tennessee. With the Chiefs aiming to improve the offense around Mahomes, they couldn’t afford that kind of money.
At the end of the day, the NFL is a salary cap league, and no matter how painful, this decision seemed to make the most sense for everyone. Mahomes and Reid will probably miss Sneed, and viceversa. But sadly, the good things sometimes come to an end.