Les Snead, Los Angeles Rams
Getty
Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead speaks in his office.
The Los Angeles Rams have a clear need on their roster, and a new trade idea would see them resolve it with a two-time Super Bowl champion. LA ranked 10th in scoring defense. However, they were 17th overall, and they ranked 19th against the pass.
That is where a deal for Trent McDuffie could do wonders.
The Rams already have a strong pass rush, and they were 12th against the run, underscoring their need for help on the back end.
Rams Land Chiefs’ Trent McDuffie in Proposed Trade
Chiefs' Week 15 injury news leaves Trent McDuffie up in the air for Chargers matchup.
GettyTrent McDuffie #22 of the Kansas City Chiefs takes the field before a game against the Baltimore Ravens.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell suggested the Rams pursue a deal for McDuffie, whom he believes the Kansas City Chiefs will make available for the right offer. Barnwell pointed to the Chiefs’ history of not paying premium money on the position.
They traded L’Jarius Sneed to the Tennessee Titans in 2024.
The Rams could be the next beneficiary of that, with this potential trade package for McDuffie this offseason.
Rams get:
Trent McDuffie
2026 fifth-round pick
Chiefs get:
2026 first-round pick
“Would the Rams use one of their first-rounders to get an immediate difference-maker?” Barnwell wrote on February 16. “McDuffie fits that bill as a feisty, aggressive cornerback with the ability to play near the line of scrimmage.”
McDuffie was the 21st overall pick of the 2022 draft by the Chiefs.
A key contributor to their last two Super Bowls (2022 and 2023), McDuffie is under contract through 2026 on his $13.9 million fifth-year option. But the Chiefs face financial hurdles.
Barnwell also pointed to the Rams’ previous deals for corners, including former Chiefs CB Marcus Peters. This past season, the Rams traded for ex-Titans cornerback Roger McCreary. One of their top CBs was former Washington Commanders first-round bust Emmanuel Forbes.
However, the Rams are in a good position to address their roster without a trade.
Rams Predicted to Draft CB Duo
Les Snead, Los Angeles Rams
GettyLos Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead on the field before a game against the New York Jets.
Like Barnwell, ESPN’s Field Yates also believes Rams general manager Les Snead will address their cornerback spot this offseason, albeit not with a trade. Instead, Yates suggested the Rams double up at QB in the 2026 draft.
Yates projected the Rams to select Tennessee’s Jermod McCoy with the 13th overall pick and his Volunteers teammate Colton Hood with the No. 29 pick.
It would be the first such instance since 1967, the common draft era.
“McCoy is a wild card. He is clearly talented enough to go in the top 10, but he missed the entire 2025 season after tearing an ACL last January. He’s a long, confident and talented man-to-man cover corner who stood out in 2024 (four interceptions and seven passes defensed). If his medicals are fully on track, he’ll go early,” Yates wrote on February 11.
“Hood didn’t actually take any snaps on the field with McCoy, as he transferred to Tennessee prior to the 2025 season that McCoy sat out due to injury. But Hood more than made up for McCoy’s void with 10 pass breakups this past season.”
Both Barnwell and Yates noted that the Rams plan to remain aggressive with Matthew Stafford in the mix, but both a trade and the more conventional draft route could qualify.