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This NFL offseason has arguably been the craziest in the history of the league. Seemingly every few days, there is either a ground-breaking trade that shakes up the NFL, or there is a massive free agent signing. Wednesday continued this trend as the Kansas City Chiefs traded All-Pro wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins. In return, the Dolphins sent Kansas City five draft picks, including a first-round pick (number 29), a second-round pick (number 50), and a fourth-round pick in this years NFL Draft. The Chiefs also received a fourth-round and a sixth round pick in next year's draft. That is truly an incredible haul for a wide receiver.
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Clearly, the Dolphins are going all-in and trying to make a splash. It required them to give Hill a four-year, $120 million deal with $72 million guaranteed. Meanwhile, the Chiefs, who entered free agency barely under the salary cap, opened up a lot of space.
So, we are going to discuss the three reasons why the Chiefs fleeced the Dolphins in the trade for Tyreek Hill.
3 Reasons the Chiefs Fleeced the Dolphins in the Tyreek Hill Trade
3. Five Draft Picks for a Receiver is Unprecedented
Last week, the Green Bay Packers traded All-Pro receiver Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders. The Packers got back a first-round pick and second-round pick in this year's draft. They are pick numbers 22 and 53, very similar to the first two picks the Chiefs landed in the Hill trade.
But Kansas City also earned two more fourth-round picks and a sixth-round pick. Hill is undoubtedly a game-breaking receiver and one of the fastest players in the NFL, if not the fastest. But I don't think anyone who knows football will argue that he is a better wide receiver than Adams. He might be faster and more explosive, but Adams is likely a better route-runner, has better hands and sees the field the way a quarterback sees the field. That last trait is very rare and incredibly helpful to the quarterback.
Don't forget, Tyreek Hill does not have a squeaky clean resume off the field either.
Kansas City signed free agent receiver Juju Smith-Schuster this offseason. Now, I am not crazy enough to even compare Hill to Smith-Schuster. But he is a gimicky-type receiver that's a bit bigger than Hill. He should be able to fill the #2 receiver, or runs most of routes as a good slot receiver.
The NFL Draft this year is exceptionally deep with wide receiver talent. The Chiefs obviously have a ton of draft capital, with eight picks over the first four rounds of the draft this year.
The #Chiefs now have 2 1st round picks, 2 2nd round picks, 2 3rd round picks, and 2 4th round picks in the 2022 NFL draft.
If nothing else, that will be an interesting few days for Chiefs fans.
— Royals Weekly (@RoyalsWeekly) March 23, 2022
It would be a shock if Kansas City did not use at least one, if not more, of those picks to try and find Hill's replacement. Admittedly, that it's not likely to happen. But paying a wide receiver $30 million per year is bananas and almost never going to be a good decision.
2. Chiefs Shed Money, Save Cap Space
After the Hill trade, Kansas City is only left with $2.7 million in dead money. They will save over $18 million in cap space with the move.
Kansas City is still facing some serious possible free agent departures. Both safeties, Tyrann Mathieu and Daniel Sorensen are free agents. It's likely the Chiefs use some of this new-found cash to re-sign at least one of them. Mathieu is the leader and signal caller of the defense. Meanwhile, Sorensen is known for making big plays at big times. Re-signing either of them would be a big deal as the AFC West is loading up.
1. Patrick Mahomes
The most important reason that the Chiefs fleeced the Dolphins is because of their quarterback. Patrick Mahomes might have the overall greatest skill set anyone has ever had who has played QB in the NFL. Hill is a great player, no doubt. But I am dying to see what he does when he doesn't have Mahomes throwing the ball to him. When he doesn't have the magician who keeps plays alive, allowing Hill to make impact plays on a broken play.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is a statue. There won't be nearly the unscripted game-breaking plays in Miami.
Meanwhile, I am banking that Mahomes will continue to be an elite quarterback in this league. This is why the quarterback position is known as the most important in all of sports. If you are great, you can elevate anyone. Mahomes will remind everyone in 2022 of that fact.
