What the Super Bowl Revealed About Cornerback Trent McDuffie

The Chiefs finally have a top-10 pick and the offseason questions are already loud. On Wacky Wednesday, we break down what the Super Bowl revealed about roster-building, including the Trent McDuffie "conundrum" and why his usage matters as much as his talent. Plus: Hot Take Kingdom returns with a full breakdown of why fans misunderstand Chris Jones' value, workload, and what Kansas City should do next to help him close games again.

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Video Transcript

Hey, welcome in.

Welcome to the Arrowhead Addict podcast.

We are here coming to you live.

Let me tell you, the dopamine, it's flowing.

I am damn excited, damn excited.

We are so excited to be joining you guys tonight.

Oh well, how you doing, man?

Patrick, good to meet you.

Sterling, yeah, Super Bowl champion, two-time Pro Bowler, Trent Green.

Trent Green, how you doing?

Hey, what's going on, guys?

Anybody, oh, he picked It.

And we'll see you next week, but until then, as always, go Chiefs.

Welcome to Wacky Wednesday on the Arrowhead Addict Channel.

I'm the blog father, Adam Best.

As always, I'm joined by the golden voice of Sterling Holmes.

Sterling, the season from hell is over.

I know you were just at Super Bowl week.

We, we have a lot of lessons learned from the Super Bowl, but I for one, am very, very excited to move forward and put that all behind us.

How are you feeling?

Yeah, I'm ready.

It's time.

2026 season is now underway.

Let's, let, let's do it.

Just a bizarre sports year for me, man, as someone, the only two teams I care about, the only two in all of sports are the Kansas City Chiefs.

Far above the rest, and then the Indiana Pacers, and both of them went to the championship, got their hearts ripped out, and then ended up tanking.

I, I like, I never, I never saw this coming, but, uh, uh, the benefit of I mean, was it really a tank or not?

Did the Chiefs accidentally tank?

It doesn't matter.

We are here with the top 10 pick and what an opportunity.

It's usually the other teams in our division, it still is the Raiders that have the 1st overall pick, but now it's the, the Broncos and Chargers who don't have, uh, you know, who have worse picks than the Chiefs, and, and that's something, I mean, when was the last time that happened?

I was thinking about that with my brother.

Uh, who you saw last week too at the Super Bowl.

He stopped by LA and we actually, uh, went back to the roots of Arrowhead Addict, and we were grinding some tape Sunday.

We were watching the wide receivers, we were watching the defensive ends , we watched Caleb Downs, we watched, uh, Love.

It, it, it was, it was fun.

It was fun.

It kind of went back to the roots of AA but uh I think this is a really good situation the Chiefs are in heading into this offseason.

Yeah, it's a great spot to be.

And if you're gonna be bad, might as well be bad, real bad, right?

If you're gonna fail, fail spectacularly, that's what you need to have happen if you want a good draft pick.

The Chiefs are sitting at number 9.

A chance to get a blue chip prospect to add to this roster, which I don't think the roster is quite as bad as some folks make it out to be.

You obviously have Patrick Mahomes.

We'll see what he looks like post-injury, but you still have 15.

So, yeah, I think things aren't quite as bad as some folks are making it out to be.

And necessity is the mother of invention, right?

The Chiefs haven't needed to recalibrate or change, and sometimes we have to have change forced upon us.

We have to have the opportunity and the bandwidth to change, and the Chiefs are now in a situation where they, they have to be self-aware enough, and we, we've seen sort of this with, with what's happened with the coaches, uh, probably.

Running back and wide receiver, most notably, right?

I don't know if they're ever actually going to hire a running back coach.

Has that happened yet?

I don't, I don't think it has, right?

No, I don't think so.

Just, just a little bit of a weird situ situation.

Yeah, I think they're still, yeah, I, I, I was thinking I was like, no, I don't think they've hired anyone yet, but they've been in talks with folk, I think.

Yeah.

Interesting.

Well, we've got a great show for you guys today.

We're gonna do some post-Super Bowl thoughts.

I'm gonna try to do some different ones than, than uh what are the obvious ones here in Chiefs Kingdom that that we need a better pass rush.

I mean, you know, everyone knows that, but I think there are some deeper lessons to be learned from the Super Bowl.

I have a hot take about Chris Jones that I have to get off my chest.

I think there's a fundamental misunderstanding of why he is paid what he is paid.

And so we'll talk about that.

I'm interested to hear your thoughts, but let's like jump right into uh the kind of the post-Super Bowl breakdown, the post-Super Bowl thoughts, and I wanna start with the Trent McDuffie conundrum because There were 2 players in this game that really shed some light on McDuffie.

I really found Christian Gonzalez, who's one kind of corner for the Patriots versus Devin Witherspoon, who's a totally different kind of corner for the Seahawks, very illuminating.

So, let's start with the tale of the tape and just like look at how these guys are built.

Christian Gonzalez is 61, 205, with 32 inch arms.

Devin Witherspoon is 6' 185 with 31 inch arms, and then McDuffie is 5'11, 193 with 30-inch arms.

It might not seem like that big of a gulf between him and Gonzalez, but 2 inches and, and 5'11 might be generous for, for Trent McDuffie .

You think?

Maybe, uh, but the arm length we know is not there and, and, and 2 inches, uh, in both height and arm length is is a pretty significant golf.

Uh, so, I think where you, the case against the Bear case for McDuffie is using him like Christian Gonzalez, who only had 34 slot coverage snaps this past season, including the playoffs, and it's really a pure boundary corner.

And I think Christian Gonzalez is worth it because there were 3 plays in that game that Trent McDuffie.

Maybe the 3rd 1 he could have made.

The one on JSN in the end zone, where JSN had a step on Christian Gonzalez, Sam Darnold is just a hair late.

And uh Christian Gonzalez knocks it down.

But there were two with Rasheed, Rasheed Shaheed deep, where you really have to have the length and the height to knock those balls down.

And we've seen time and time again in the playoffs with Trent McDuffie, kind of that fatal flaw is when there's a guy like AJ Brown or even Matt Collins, who apparently every once in a while in the playoffs turns into Randy Moss for a few plays.

They're just too big for him to, you, you know, he just can't.

Fight with those ball winners and those contested catch situations.

So, I think if we're looking at using McDuffie like Christian Gonzalez, that's a little crazy because He just doesn't have that, that rare trait.

Now, if McDuffie is used like Devin Witherspoon, who had 231 slot cover snaps, and it's sort of a versatile chess piece that's the heart of that dark side defense, and they move him all around, and he is a master blitzer, and he's great against the run , and you never know where he's gonna line up.

I, I think he's worth it.

I think he's worth it.

I think if the Chiefs use him like that and aren't like, he's an outside corner now, we're just gonna stick Jamari Connor, whoever in the slot full-time, well, that's not a situation or arrangement that, that works, but I think Jamari Connor and that whole failed experiment may have broken our brains a little bit because I really think Devin Witherspoon was the heart of that Seattle defense.

Mike McDonald, the head coach and, and defensive play caller has said the same thing.

And really, I, I thought his blitzing made a huge difference in the Super Bowl, and he's, he's a year younger than McDuffie, but he was a top 5 pick.

They're, they're pretty similar players, so I, I, I think they're kinda like two divergent paths the Chiefs could go, go down with McDuffie, and I think a lot of it comes down to utilization.

If you utilize him, Optimally, he is worth it.

If you don't, he's not.

Does that all make sense to you?

Well, yeah, well, we've been screaming this for 2 years now of put McDuffie the majority of the time in the slot unless it's a two quarterback set only, then yes, you put him outside.

I, we do not understand the, Idolization of Jamari Connor in the slot by Spags, it makes no sense to me.

I think anyone understands that that's, again, I, I feel bad because Jamari Connor is a good player.

He's just not great in the slot.

And so it puts him in a spot where he is not his best self, which makes it difficult.

Same thing with Trent McDuffie.

He is the best slot corner.

In football.

He's probably a 10 to 15 range outside cornerback in football.

Maybe still like a top 8.

Maybe it's 8 to 15 or 8 to 12 outside corner in football.

It's not like we're talking about a bad player.

We're talking about a great outside corner still, but not the best slot corner in football.

I, I, I don't understand it.

You had the guys.

You have the guys, you have Noel Williams and Christian Fulton and Jalen Watson last year.

You had 4 guys that you trust on the outside, and you still didn't do it.

So, believing that they would use McDuffie like Witherspoon to me feels like a foolhardy endeavor.

I think we all agree that's the way he should be used, but the reality is they probably won't.

And so, instead of having that insane chess piece, you would then be paying.

Top dollar for a top 8-ish outside corner.

There's worse ways to spend your money.

McDuffie's been a Very valuable player, even if he's only exclusively on the outside.

But is it your best way of using your money?

I think part of it gets thrown into the conversation of, will slot corners get paid less.

So, how much of that was McDuffie's camp, don't know if it's true or not, but how much of that would have been McDuffie saying, hey, I'm playing outside corner because I want to be paid like an outside corner.

It's like left tackle versus right tackle.

You want to play left tackle.

You know why?

You get paid more to play left tackle.

So, there are some nuances that go into this that is tougher than just saying, well, yeah, I'll put him in the slot because sometimes you never know what's going on behind the scenes.

I'm, again, I'm not trying to speculate or start some rumors here.

That's just my thoughts on this.

I think it's always difficult.

I think the Chiefs would have tried doing that with Luerrius Snead said, hey, You played a lot in the slot, so we're not gonna pay you as a traditional outside corner.

We're not doing that.

That makes no sense to us because you played a lot in the slot.

And so, there's always these little nuances that go in and out of, um, it's why was it Chris Jones wanted to be paid like an edge, not just an interior defensive tackle, cause the edges get paid more.

There's always some situations that go, uh, Off the field that make things a little more difficult.

And it makes a lot of sense.

I mean, Travis Kelsey for his entire prime, performed closer to Devonte Adams or Mike Evans than any of his contemporaries at the tight end position, and he got paid a fraction of half of sometimes of what those guys got paid, and is that fair?

No, I mean, you could see him fighting for a different designation, arbitration or whatever.

My hope is that Devin Weatherspoon being arguably The most valuable player or the leader of the heart of a Super Bowl champion defense, a dominant defense can allow us to recalibrate in Kansas City and say, we got to prepare for a post-Chris Jones future for this defense and who's gonna lead that, who's gonna be the most valuable player.

There's a case for McDuffie, and I, I think for a team, we've been talking and, and this is really the next thing we're gonna talk about.

We've been So desperate for two true blue chip players in Kansas City, and it's hard to get them when you have an expensive quarterback.

And I mean, Chris Jones, his salary as well, but most notably an expensive quarterback, but also when you pick late every year, and here's a guy that is a blue chip player.

We have him currently on our defense.

Do we want to trade him away when they are so hard to find?

In our situation in Kansas City, I, I think maybe I'm swinging back the other way after, uh, and, and also just really Mulling over what the actual value will be for Trent McDuffie, uh, because of his contract situation and his size and everything.

I just don't think he's going to command as much as Chiefs fans have been theorizing.

It's gonna be Lageri Snead all over again, which I think would be, it'll be more than that.

It'll be more, it will, it will be, but I'm saying the situation where The return doesn't meet expectations.

I think that would be the situation once again, and his knees aren't a ticking time bomb like Legerius needs were.

So it's a, it's, it's just a totally different situation.

I know it worked out for us before and that second rounder, uh, hopefully still is very valuable, um.

I, I mean, who did they pick there?

He was a 3rd rounder It was a 3rd rounder.

It was a very early 3rd rounder though.

I don't know that it may have been packaged.

Was it Gelati?

Aban Glati.

Trying to think.

Anyway, uh, that kind of leads us when we're talking about value and blue chip players.

I watched Nick Aminwri, the safety, the rookie safety for the Seahawks, who I thought I couldn't believe how late he got picked last year.

I thought he was a top 15 player in that draft.

Is he a unique fit for a defense and do you have to have the right guy to integrate him properly?

Sure, but he, he's a, he's a special player and then Kenneth Walker, who is uh like a top forty-ish pick, uh, really finally came into his own.

I've always kind of thought with Kenneth Walker, he is the kind of player, he's not as good as Saquan Barkley, but he's similar where he's, he's kind of boom or bust.

So, you're gonna want to give that guy 20 touches because he's gonna have about 8 of those that are gonna get stopped for no gain, but he's not a 3 or 4 yard player.

If he gets out in space, he's gonna rip off 1020, 30, 40 yards, maybe take it to the house, and there's just not a lot of players about that.

But really, Kenneth Walker, when both Both offenses were struggling.

I think the real difference in that game is he took some pressure off Sam Darnold and allowed Sam Darnold to calm down and not have to feel like he was carrying everything by himself.

Drake May did not get that opportunity.

They couldn't didn't run the ball.

So Drake May was pressing , he's putting everything on his shoulders, and it was just a completely different situation.

I mean, there, there were those two plays in a row where I think Kenneth Walker ripped off a total of about 50 yards where I was like, this is, this is the game right here.

This is gonna be the difference in the game, and they just have this easy button that they can hit.

To take pressure off their quarterback and rely on the defense when the other team isn't finding much on offense.

The Chiefs just haven't had that easy button in so, so long.

I mean, maybe Kareem Hunt's rookie year is the last time they had certainly, Jamal Charles was an easy button player, um.

But this led me thinking to those kinds of players and how valuable a unique safety or running back can be, and I, I know we really want a wide receiver or, or an edge and don't get me wrong, like I like Ruben Bain, I, Jordan Tyson is my number one receiver in this class.

I like them, but there is that lingering thought in the back of my brain.

Are these guys true blue chips?

Are these guys legit top 10 players in any draft class?

And, or are they the kind of guys that you can kind of get similar players in the 2020s.

I feel like that with the receivers almost for sure.

I, I, with David Bailey and Ruben Bain, I, I don't know yet.

I, I haven't made up my mind, but I know one thing for sure, Jeremiah Love and Caleb Downs, the Chiefs are never gonna have an opportunity to draft.

A, a player like that in the twenties, uh, uh, kind of a special blue, no doubt blue chip player at their positions.

So, you can get so hung up on positional value that you can kind of look at it the wrong way and, and there, there's really no right or wrong way to look at it, but sometimes we don't look at it as will Love or Downs, that type of running back or safety ever be available to the Chiefs in the draft again?

Probably not.

Probably not.

And I think the way the Chiefs do things and with the infrastructure they have, maybe a player like Love fits in better.

I mean, Ashton Jenny just did not have the infrastructure to be a top 10 running back last year for, for the Vegas Raiders.

Well, no, I, but to me it comes down to Caleb Downs makes so much sense because yes, Caleb Downs, you see Kyle Hamilton, Kyle Hamilton, you see Nick Emman War.

I mean, Brian Branch, even for the line, I mean.

Safety is making a, a slight comeback, right?

And I think for Kansas City, he, I don't wanna say Eric Berry because that's just too much pressure on a guy, but you could say maybe the Kyle Hamilton or even War types.

That's Caleb Downs.

That is what you're looking at.

And you would imagine a very high floor as well.

Very high ceiling, very high floor, that feels like it would be a very safe pick.

I would be shocked if he's there at 9.

I think Caleb Downs is gonna go, he, he could go 2, he could go 8, but I would be surprised if he's there at 9 for KC.

And when it comes to Jeremiah Love, I get what you're saying.

But I still will go back to The 9 draft pick, and I, I hate doing this, but you have to bring the economics of it into the conversation.

If you draft him at 9.

That's a first-round contract where you're no longer getting a deal.

Almost any other position, you're getting a deal at number 9, right?

If you draft an edge and it's like $8 million a year AAV, oh my gosh, what a deal.

You draft a running back at 9 and it's around $8 million AAV, you're like, that's barely cheaper than what Bruce Hall's gonna get.

So why wouldn't you try and bring in Bruce Hall or ETN or Kenneth Walker for let's say it's even $12.

Let's get even more bullish.

Let's say it's 12 .

Well, then that's a $4 million difference.

Well, if you get an edge, that might be a 20+ million dollars dollar surplus that you're bringing in by drafting him at 9 versus going out, let's just say hypothetically, Trey Hendrickson.

Now, on the other side of things, the odds of an edge being Trey Hendrickson year one are rare.

The odds of Downs or Jeremiah Love being a very, very impactful player year one are very high.

It's what really happens years 234, and then the 5th-year option that, that the edge would make the biggest, or even if, let's say it's Peter Woods, would make the biggest impact.

Even wide receiver, you would probably say year 2 through 5.

That's what it comes down to.

Year 1, I would agree and argue that Jeremiah Love would be the biggest impact player that the Chiefs could probably draft.

But years 3 and on, uh, with the AAV and the value and the surplus, I just don't, I wouldn't be pissed.

If the Chiefs got love But I wouldn't be thrilled.

I'd be whelmed, slightly underwhelmed.

Again, I think we'll find out if the Chiefs draft or the Chiefs bring in, um, Breece Hall, ETN or Walker before the draft because they like to at least have a 53-man roster they could throw out there before the draft starts.

Then we'll know if which way they're leaning.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I think Kenneth Walker, there's no way he's hitting the open market after what he just did in Seattle.

Uh, I think he'll either be retained or franchised.

Why did the Jets even keep Um, Bruce Hall, unless they were going to bring him, you know, re-sign him, put him under the franchise tag.

They'll, they'll get a decent comp pick for him, but it won't be a third-rounder at his price range, and I'm not sure ETN is gonna come back either cause that coach really likes to have multiple running backs.

I know they like Bashel Tutin, but I think there's a definitely a scenario where none of those guys hit the open market and you're suddenly looking at the best player being maybe Tyler Algier or I, I think Javonte Williams possibly could even go back to Dallas.

So then you're looking at Algier, guys like Kenneth Gainwell, it's suddenly not a very good class, and I don't know that this is a very great running back class beyond love.

So, suddenly you're looking at a value over replacement discussion.

You can't leave out the economics, but you also can't leave out value over replacement if he is.

Uh, night and day better than the guy you can get at 40 or 72 or whatever, it, it has to be in consideration.

The other thing I'd throw out here is just probability of busting.

Right, like if FAU bust at 31 or whatever it was, it's a glorified second round pick.

You can survive that.

Missing a top 10 pick is.

It gets general managers fired sometimes.

It does.

You can't have a John Ross uh in, in the top 10.

It will set your, or Kevin White, it will set your franchise back uh years, years.

So, I think the most important thing to me is that they have conviction in the pick more than positional value.

I, I know it seems like this is our only chance to get a dominant edge.

And I, I, trust me, I'm gonna be watching the combine to see how long Ruben Bain's arms are because that's gonna, that's gonna be a really big thing for the Chiefs.

Uh, I think there, there could be a point where the Chiefs take him off their board because they don't see him as a scheme fit.

It will tell us a lot, how they view that player will actually tell us a lot about.

Spag's willingness to evolve and see the position a little differently and that, that's obviously one takeaway from the Super Bowl is they, their defensive line is kind of more like a basketball team where you have some, some variation.

You have different kinds of, of players with different arsenals and the Denver Broncos are a lot like this.

Jonathan Franklin Myers and Zack Allen and Nick Bonito, they're all kinda, all these guys are kind of different.

They can throw different pitches at you and the Chiefs.

Outside of Chris Jones, the Chiefs just have one pitch.

It is, it is, it is just sturdy power guys who, who win with motor, and it, it, it's just time for that to, to go by the wayside.

Yeah.

No, I'm with you.

It's, it's It's been frustrating to see the sameness that has been perpetually permeating throughout this defensive line, especially just the edge rushers.

FAU was actually a, a, a, a different pitch, but he wasn't really ever used.

I still have some question marks in FAU, man, as far as could he be a Joshua Uheer type of guy?

Could he be a guy that's, um, I know he didn't have this this year, but could he be a guy that gets you 6 to 7 sacks on obvious passing downs?

Could that be FAU?

Well, he never really got the opportunity.

He looked good in the 5 snaps a game he would get, and that was it.

And then he was out all last year, so we didn't see any progression.

He'll be on the team.

His contract doesn't make sense to cut him.

So FAU more than likely will still be at least on the roster.

What his role will look like, we don't know, but.

Um, you're right, just even trying to get a new stylistic player in the defensive line room would be huge.

Right.

FAU is only, he just turned 24, guys.

He just turned 24 years old and A lot of this comes down to fit and situation, whether these guys make it or not.

Some guys just don't have it.

I'm not sure Sky Moore in retrospect would have made it anywhere.

FAU I, I, I'm just not so sure on because when he gets snaps, occasionally, he will flash.

He'll get a tackle for a loss or something and, and you'll see these faint glimpses with him.

And it wouldn't shock me if he had like a, obviously, this is a, a better player, but Chase Young disappointed in his first stop at Edge, had the injury, went somewhere else, wasn't what you wanted, but has been a very productive player in New Orleans.

I wonder if FAU is gonna, gonna find greener pastures on a, a roster that's a little bit more open-minded about the kinds of defensive linemen they're willing to rotate in and out.

Uh, I, I'm with you.

I just can't shake the thought of, and it's the Joshua O'Shea thing that, that really kind of leads me down this road, just wondering if there's a lack of flexibility with Spags because he cares so much about these, about contain and these, these edges, setting the edge and stopping the run.

And personally, I'd be willing to bend and sacrifice a little bit on the run to add a little bit of juice, situational juice to the pass rush, but I know like Spags has been very stubborn wrapping his head around that, and the guy obviously has a brilliant football mind, knows a lot.

He does things the way he does them for a reason, but at some point, you start hitting a wall and it's, it's time to recalibrate.

Yeah, agreed.

Do we have any other lessons from the Super Bowl?

Uh, I, I heard you talking about Sam Darnold and like if this is the new normal, if quarterbacks like in that tier can, can consistently win and uh through running the ball and like a ferocious pass rush.

And really, he's not that different than Jalen Hurts.

I know they have a completely different skill set, but they have some, some high traits and some obvious limitations, but in the right situation, you can win with them.

I just think this was a down year.

I don't want to bag on the Patriots too much.

I do think they're a little fraudulent, like, I do think this is kind of a Truman Show year for them where it almost felt like someone was pulling the string strings behind the scenes to line this up for them and uh.

Um, yeah, I, I mean, I knew before the game, we were joking on Twitter about when they, when they played Man in the Box by Alice in Chains for Seattle, it was over at that moment, but it just felt like the Patriots were happy to be there again, you know, like we're not supposed to be here and uh we're playing with house money, whereas Seattle, uh, it, it just, they just really, really wanted it, but I, I don't know.

I think whether it's quarterback injuries and all this other stuff, next year is gonna look dramatically different.

I think Kansas City is gonna be back in the Knicks.

I think Baltimore's gonna be back in the Knicks.

It would shock me if they're not.

That both of those teams have been running hot for a while.

They caught the negative end of variants.

I expect like post-Sean McDermott, maybe even the Buffalo Bills will take another step forward.

It's, it's certainly Possible, you still have Joe Burrow in, in the conference.

The, your Houston Texans defense that you're so high on and rightfully so, if they can figure things out on offense, they're gonna be in the mix and the Chargers, if they have their tackles healthy and a lot of cap room and suddenly Mike McDaniel calling plays for Justin Herbert, it's gonna be a lot tougher.

I just think this was a down year, a bit of an anomaly, and we shouldn't say Uh, having a quarterback like Sam Darnold and a dominant defense and run game is the new blueprint.

No, I'm, I'm 100% with you.

I think it's a little easier in the NFC to get there.

AFC I think is gonna continue to be a gauntlet.

NFC West, by the way, might be, it's like the NFC West and the Eagles.

Like that's basically what it is.

It's, it's, you have Rams, 49ers, Seahawks, Eagles, and, um, I can't put the Bucks.

I can't put anyone in the NFC South.

You can't put the Cardinals, not putting Cowboys or Washington at this point or the Giants.

Then you go to the, um, Well, I guess the Bears, I don't really believe that much in, like, maybe a little bit, but I think so many things went their way this year.

If you just want to talk about in the game variants.

I mean, they were so many things went the Bears' way.

You don't take anything away.

It was fun to watch.

I just don't think they repeat that.

Vikings look like they made the huge mistake of moving on from, uh, Dan to go to number 9.

And then, uh, Lions, we'll see.

Did they peak too early in their trend up and now they're paying all these guys and it's tough and yeah, I, I, I don't know.

I just, uh, then the Packers are, I think always gonna be around a 5.

They're, they might be the new, uh, Steelers.

Where they just always go 10 and 7 or 9 and 8 and always in the hunt, but never quite good enough.

That's what it feels like the Packers will be to me.

So, NFC I feel like is way more opportunity than the AFC.

I agree with you, man.

Thinking about Sam Darnold, where you would rank him in the quarterback hierarchy in the NFC versus the AFC.

It's a pretty interesting discussion cause I, I like outside of Stafford.

Maybe Jordan Love.

If you are a huge Hurts or Brock Purdy backer, maybe, but you start getting to the point where And then in the, in the AFC you just rattle off 6 names in your sleep before you're even Considering, remotely considering Sam Darnold.

So I, I do think it is the easier, easier conference and uh this year for some reason, When you don't have the Ravens and the Chiefs as part of that gauntlet.

It's just, it's just a lot easier.

It's not what the Chiefs had to do a few years ago where They went through two of the greatest DVO DVOA teams ever in the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens.

It, it just wasn't like that at all.

Yeah.

All right.

Hot Take Kingdom, it has been a while, so we're bringing it back and this week's Hot Take Kingdom is the fan base has a fundamental misunderstanding of why Chris Jones gets paid so much.

Welcome to the Kingdom.

Oh, you know, I wish we lived in a world.

Where the person who worked the hardest and worked the most got paid the most.

That's just not how life works.

I'm gonna use Robert Downey Jr. as an example.

So, Robert Downey Jr. for the last two Avengers movies, and they brought him back, but we'll get to that.

He, he had 50 minutes combined over 2 minutes, 2 movies.

He made $75 million alone for the last movie.

He made like $150 million combined.

He didn't make that because he was on set more than anybody else or because he, you know, how many minutes he had on screen.

He has that because, again, we're talking value over replacement.

He has a 99th percentile skill set when it comes to charisma and carrying a movie and getting an audience in, in seats.

Uh, that is why he is who he is.

That's why they brought him back because he is a rare talent.

Is it fair?

No.

Is it fair to the production assistant or the second assistant director who are working night and day and, and killing themselves in the production?

Life is not fair.

And Chris Jones is a similar type of talent.

There, you just cannot find Chris Joneses, you cannot find them.

He is ninety-ninth percentile, not right now in terms of his, his elite pass rushing trait.

ninety-ninth percentile in the history of the NFL for an interior defensive lineman.

To be able to generate pressures, uh, despite being the focal point of double teams and offensive coordinators and offensive lines and quarterbacks, everybody knows that the game plan has to revolve around not allowing 95 to blow up their shit.

That, that's, and I, I think Fans want him to play a ton of snaps.

I've been arguing that he's playing too many snaps.

So, there are only 3 defensive tackles over the past 2 seasons who have played more snaps than Chris Jones.

You have Zack Allen, who's 28, you have Uh, Kobe Turner, who's 26, and Jaylen Carter, who's 24.

Chris Jones will be 32 this summer, and You know, ideally, he would be, he could just have infinite energy and blow up the run and play every snap, but it's important that he doesn't get injured, it's important that he's fresh to do what he does best.

I don't really want him in there on 2nd and 2, being an innings eater when you can pay Mike Pinnell peanuts to do that.

Uh, it, it's the same thing in Green Bay.

They don't play, they don't pay Micah Parsons 47 million because he stops the run or because he's gonna play every down.

They pay Micah Parsons that money because he makes life on the rest of the defense.

Infinitely easier, and he makes life on the opposing offense hell.

They have to be concerned with him at all times, and despite that, he can still wreck a game at any moment.

And I, I have some statistics, this isn't just hot hair, I have some statistics to prove that despite Chris Jones's situation around him, the defensive line, rapidly deteriorating, I think he's still the same guy.

He may have started a little slow last year, but I thought he finished.

Uh, as the same old guy.

So, over the past two seasons, Chris Jones has the second-highest pressure rate at 0.113%.

Uh, and that's just, you know, he's top four in, in snaps, he's playing.

Uh, a high volume.

So he's not really losing efficiency with that high volume.

Only Milton Williams has had a better rate, and he played 300 less snaps.

He's younger, he played 300 less snaps.

He, Milton Williams was in two very good situations.

He was on that dominant defensive line in Philadelphia, the year they won the championship, and then he went over to play with Christian Barmore in New England, another very good situation.

And then the only kind of other player that I'd throw in here that's close in terms of, he, he actually had more pressures than Chris Jones, the only player, that's Zack Allen, but he played 100 more snaps, and like I said before, he plays next to Nick Bonito and Jonathan Franklin Myers.

Then let's look at PFF pass rushing grade.

Last season, he was at 90.7.

Only Jeffrey Simmons was better at 91.4.

Nobody else had above a 90 grade.

2024, PFF pass rush grade, 91.5.

Only Milton Williams was better at 91.7.

I believe again, nobody else had over above 90.

I, I forget if it was ESPN advanced stats.

I've been looking for this stat.

I know I saw.

I know I retweeted, I know I had it bookmarked.

He, uh, late in the last season, he had the fastest get-off time of any defensive tackle in the NFL.

His double-team rate is still among the highest, and like, I, I'm just sick of arguing with Chiefs fans about this, like, about him being a slacker or not being worth it.

I had someone tell me today that he, he's not the 2nd or 3rd.

I think he's the 2nd most valuable part of the dynasty.

The 2nd most valuable player in the dynasty.

I had someone to tell me today that Creed Humphrey and Harrison Butler were more valuable, and my head almost, it, it like literally exploded.

I just don't think we understand how rare a Chris Jones is.

I think maybe the 17 sack season he had early in his career, when he was young, I believe he was playing.

Uh, next to, um, Justin Houston, at, at that moment, who is the best player he's ever played on a defensive line with, and also, at that moment, Chris Jones was not drawing double teams very often.

He was not the focal point of an offensive coordinator's game plan, and then also the constant comparing him to Aaron Donald.

Yeah.

Aaron Donald, to me, is up there with Lawrence Taylor and Deion Sanders as the greatest defensive player to ever.

walk the planet.

So, if you're gonna keep comparing him to Aaron Donald instead of every other defensive tackle who's played for the last 20 years, which I think he has a case for being the second best, then you're gonna be disappointed because Aaron Donald is a freak of nature and a one of one human being.

But this is where I'm at with Chris Jones.

We pay him to be an elite pass rusher, late in games, like he has so many times in the playoffs, whether it's, it's sacks, pressures, I think we get a little too caught up in sacks, forcing interceptions, forcing incompletions, allowing teammates to get cleanup sacks.

I think that's why we pay him.

I would like him to, to, instead of 1100, uh, well, 1100 snaps over the last two years, I, I'd like to get that down to 800, like, kind of like Milton Williams has.

And that's just kind of my case for Chris Jones being misunderstood and still having that elite value.

Where are you kind of at with Chris?

Yeah, I think it's really fascinating because the first half of the season, I think it's fair to say he took a big step back and he had a couple of plays that really stood out and the sack numbers weren't there.

So, it was easy to pick on a guy who's getting paid an absurd amount of money, who the numbers weren't there, and the two biggest things you remember were basically plays being took off.

Him going inside trying to get a sack, which allowed Herbert to get outside to ice the game, and then the Jacksonville Jaguars game.

So those really stand out.

Well, in the second half of the season came around and he was, last 7 games or so was great.

I mean, he was excellent.

But the issue was that those came in games where the Chiefs were basically done, right?

Like Chris Jones' best games.

Yeah, some came when the season was on the line, which was awesome to see.

But the Colts.

Yeah, that was amazing.

But then as it went on and they weren't gonna make the playoffs, or at least a, a bad chance, he put up more numbers and you're like, well, It would be nice to have, have those early in the year, right?

It's like, sure, he hit 40 home runs, but they all came when the team was down 9 to 1.

What did he do when it was, uh, they were down 1 in the bottom of the ninth, right?

I'm not saying Chris Jones is that all year long, but it did feel like in a lot of big-time moments when the season was still in flux in the balance, we didn't see him step up.

I'm not saying you cut him.

I'm not saying he's not worth it.

I'm not saying that, oh my gosh, I had this this horrible thing to say about Chris Jones.

Now, he's still a phenomenal player.

I just think that we also need to realize he's not quite the same guy.

I know PFF and all that, say all that.

I feel like the eyes somewhat tell a slightly different story.

He can still be the focal point of your defensive line, but he needs help.

And you're right, that 17 sack season almost hurts Chris Jones.

Because then everyone compared him to Aaron Donald when you're comparing him to, again, maybe the best defensive tackle, probably the best defensive tackle in NFL history.

He is, right?

It's like comparing, well, why isn't he Jerry Rice?

Well, because no one's Jerry Rice.

Compare him to someone else, right?

Like, that's somewhat what we're doing with Chris Jones.

And that obviously goes to show you how good he is, that he's even in the same breadth as, um, Aaron Donald.

I, I just think that the Chiefs need to, Yes, have him still be the focal point of the defensive line, but you gotta have someone else at edge to, to help.

Omar Norman Lott, you bring in, you draft him, and then you put weight on him.

Uh, what are you doing?

He could help alleviate some of the snap count concerns of Chris Jones.

Cause I'm with you.

You're right, Micah Parsons, they, they don't play him on 2nd and 2 because we want him to be fresh for 3rd and 7th.

Well, Chris Jones is out there on 2nd and 2, and then 3rd and 7th rolls around.

He's gassed.

Like it's just human nature and he's double-teamed every single time.

So, not every single time.

It's not quite the highest rate.

Like you're, the double-team rate of Chris Jones is extremely high.

It was like 65% the last I checked at one point last year, which is very high.

It's not the highest in the NFL, but it's a high number.

You gotta get an edge to help out.

You have to help them out.

Let them see more one on ones and the stack numbers will go from 6 to 7 to 9 to 10, and we will stop this conversation.

I think we see eye to eye, brother.

I, I would say about early in the season, how much of that was him calibrating to.

The defensive line collapsing around him.

Sure.

The the Charles Aminiahow, I, I'm not trying to make excuses, he could have been better, uh, but I thought he was good in a lot of games that did matter, like one of the Denver games, he, he almost won by himself, the Houston Texans game.

I thought he was the best player on the field.

There are probably 5 games where I was like, this is the best player on the field, and I do think him adjusting to the Charles and Minahee and Mike Dana that showed up, I mean, they were just, Uh, uh, a, a shell of themselves and they weren't dominant players to, to begin with.

So, I think if they can add some pieces around him and lower his snaps, this is also about prolonging Chris Jones's career.

We'd like to get more, more years out of him and also, I, I think he can still be the guy that can close out playoff games, that can make Quarterbacks make crucial mistakes in those, in those winning moments, and, and that's the other thing about the Justin Herbert thing that I, that I wanted to bring up is Live by the gun, die by the gun.

If you're gonna be Steve Spagnolo and you let, and you let Chris Jones freelance and do all these things and big moments in games and it works out for you so many times, you gotta live with the one time it bites you in the ass.

So I, I think that's worth mentioning, not that Chris Jones doesn't have contained responsibilities and And that wasn't a poor decision on his part and, and not that, that the Jacksonville slacking thing when Trevor Lawrence fell and went in the end zone, that was embarrassing too.

And Chris Jones had, had a bad penalty in a big moment this year.

He, he, he needs to be better, but I think he is worth the salary and I think we can still see near peak Chris Jones going forward.

That's all we've got for you guys.

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