It's Official: Titans Acquire Chiefs Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed Via Trade

Mar 29, 2024 at 05:19 PM

Jim Wyatt

Senior Writer/Editor

NASHVILLE – The Titans have added one of the NFL's top cornerbacks in L'Jarius Sneed.

Titans General Manager Ran Carthon said Sneed's addition is "huge" for the defense while discussing the team's diligence in getting the deal done.

On Friday, the Titans and Chiefs officially agreed to terms on a trade that sends Sneed to Tennessee.

The compensation: Kansas City is trading Sneed to the Titans in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick and a swap of 2024 seventh-round picks (Titans get pick 252, Chiefs get pick 221). Sneed is getting a new multi-year contract with the Titans.

It's just the latest in a series of big acquisitions for the Titans in recent weeks.

"It's a huge get," Titans General Manager Ran Carthon said of Sneed. "It gives you three top-flight corners in him and Chidobe (Awuzie) and Roger (McCreary) that can just flat-out cover people. He matches Chido's energy of being a physical, aggressive corner that can also play in run support. You see a lot of the way game is going with the toss crack, and forcing the corners to come up there and play more in run support, and we have guys who are willing to stick their face in there and tackle people."

Sneed, 27, has started 57 regular season games over the past four seasons, and he's recorded 10 interceptions, 6.5 sacks, and 40 passes defensed. Sneed has also been a key performer in playoff games with the Chiefs. It was Sneed who punched the ball from the grasp of Ravens receiver Zay Flowers right before he crossed the goal-line in the AFC Championship Game back in January, a key play in Kansas City's win.

Sneed, a two-time Super Bowl champion, is one of only two NFL players (Harrison Smith, Minnesota) over the last four years to register at least 10 interceptions and 6.5 sacks. His 25 passes defensed over the last two seasons rank 11^th in the NFL. He also brings 13 games of postseason experience to the Titans..

A 2020 fourth-round pick out of Louisiana Tech, Sneed had been the subject of trade rumors for weeks, even before the Chiefs placed the franchise tag on him earlier this month to avoid losing him in free agency.

The Titans stayed in the conversation for Sneed, and worked out a trade that was widely reported last Friday.

The two sides finally made it official today.

"You just remain patient," Carthon said. "You did your due diligence prior to them franchising him, and then when he was franchised, you kind of got a feel on where it could possibly go. And then (the Chiefs) got the deal done with Chris Jones. You study other teams and try and figure out where they are, so it was one of those things where we used a patient and diligent approach, and when the opportunity presented itself, we were in a position to do it, and we made it happen.

"And, it took effort from both teams to get it done."

Earlier in free agency the Titans added running back Tony Pollard, wide receiver Calvin Ridley, cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, center Lloyd Cushenberry, linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr, defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day, quarterback Mason Rudolph and offensive lineman Saahdiq Charles.

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Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed #38 of the Tennessee Titans portraits at the Tennessee Titans facility on April 02, 2024 in Nashville, TN. Photo By Jessie Rogers/Tennessee Titans