The New York Giants reportedly tried to trade for Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Drue Tranquill this offseason. But according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN, the player had no interest in leaving Arrowhead, proving that Andy Reid‘s system remains attractive for some players, even if it wasn’t the case for Charles Omenihu.
Back in March, Raanan first reported that the Giants attempted to trade for a veteran LB without revealing his name. “Giants definitely did try to trade for a linebacker, I heard,” Raanan said on his YouTube channel.
“And the story I heard was that said linebacker didn’t really want to go, and the trade kind of broke apart. It’s a guy that’s getting towards the end of his career, and it just didn’t work out.”
With the NFL Owners Meetings taking place this week, Raanan made an appearance on the Breaking Big Blue podcast to reveal that the linebacker in question was Tranquill.
#Chiefs LB Drue Tranquill recently renegotiated the final year of his deal, taking his base pay from $6 million down to $3.5 million ($3M fully guaranteed) and trimming his cap number by $2.5 million.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 13, 2026
Once considered a possible cap casualty, Tranquill is locked in for 2026. pic.twitter.com/W25pxm09m4
“The linebacker that the Giants actually were going to trade for, from the Kansas City Chiefs — it seemed to be before the start of free agency — Drue Tranquill,” Raanan said. “He ended up staying in Kansas City, taking a pay cut to stay. Seems to be something he wanted to do. He didn’t want to leave there.”
Drue Tranquill comfortable with Reid, Chiefs
Tranquill, who turns 31 in August, has agreed to a restructured deal in order to continue playing under Reid. This year, he’s accepting a reduction in his base salary from $6 million to $3.5 million just to remain with the Chiefs.
After spending his first four NFL seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers, Tranquill found in Kansas City a successful culture that allowed him to win a Super Bowl in his very first season at Arrowhead.
He was rewarded immediately after that championship with a three-year, $19.00 million contract that included $12.50 million guaranteed upon signing and a signing bonus of $4.50 million.
Since their Super Bowl LVIII win, the Chiefs have lost many defensive contributors who went on to land bigger deals elsewhere. Tranquill, however, seems happy to stay with the organization as it aims to get back to the top after a frustrating 2025 season, in which the Chiefs missed the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
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NY Giants’ moves after Tranquill’s decision to stay in KC
The Giants, also looking for a strong resurgence in 2026, switched their attention to Tremaine Edmunds after failing to persuade Tranquill and also brought back Micah McFadden to boost their LB room.
New York had a tough but necessary decision to make at the position before that, having parted with team captain Bobby Okereke. The move allowed the Giants to free up $9 million in cap space as the linebacker was set to count $14.4 million against the cap in the final year of the four-year, $40 million deal he signed in 2023.
