The Chicago Bears were hit with some bad news last week regarding their top priority target of the offseason, two days after hearing from general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson at the 2025 Combine.
That news being that the Kansas City Chiefs were prepared to place right guard Trey Smith on a non-exclusive franchise tag prior to Tuesday's deadline, even if that meant making him the highest-paid guard in NFL history.
The news stunned the Bears, but that stun-gun is starting to wear off. The reason being is that just because Smith is off the market doesn't mean he's fully off the table.
When speaking with the media last week in Indianapolis, Poles had this shocking quote, which resonates more today when breaking down the Smith options.
"If there are certain players that hit all the check boxes that you need, there’s really no reason to hold back and you can be aggressive in those situations."
That to me sounds like Poles is prepared to do whatever it takes to land his guy, saying that guy checks all the boxes, and a player like Smith definitely does. But the Chiefs made the process much more difficult by using the tag.
By using the non-exclusive tag, Smith is free to sign an offer sheet with another organization interested in landing him, but the Chiefs have right to match said offers. If the Chiefs declined to match any offer, Kansas City would receive two first-round picks from the team that signs him. Once Smith signs the tag, he can't negotiate with any teams and the Chiefs can trade him for any price.
So the Bears can play the waiting game. Trading two firsts would be insane for a guard, plus paying him a long-term, top of the market, deal. So, stick with me here.
Last year, the Chiefs also used the non-exclusive franchise tag on cornerback L'Jarius Sneed with the intent to pay him long-term. The two sides couldn't agree on any deal but Sneed signed the tag. Then the Tennessee Titans swooped in and acquired Sneed for a third-round pick plus a seventh-round pick swap, and promptly gave him a four-year, $76.4 million contract.
The reason why the Chiefs didn't receive two first-round picks in that trade is because the tag was signed by Sneed, and no long term deal was agreed to after signing.
Once again, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach hopes to reach a deal with Trey Smith by then to avoid all this, but if the two are unable to do so and Smith signs the tag, a similar situation to what happened with Sneed could occur again.
To get some more context, I spoke with our A to Z Sports expert Charles Goldman to break down the insight from the Chiefs' side of things.
"While the Chiefs don't intend to tag-and-trade RG Trey Smith, it's certainly not an option that's completely off the table. Absent a long-term contract extension by the start of the new league year, it's a pivot they'd almost certainly have to entertain. The team has got over $95M locked up on the offensive line as things currently stand, more money than any other NFL team has invested on the O-Line. That's all while having no long-term solution at left tackle, a position that cost them the three-peat in Super Bowl LIX and is perhaps the most critical non-QB position in football. A trade could help Kansas City free up cap space to invest in the left tackle position (or others in free agency) while acquiring more draft capital. Those extra picks could be used to facilitate a trade-up for a top left tackle prospect, or they could simply use them to fill any number of needs the team has for 2025 and beyond." - Charles Goldman
As for the potential long-term contract, saying the Bears can make a trade, the $23.402 million tag sets the bar for negotiations, meaning Chicago would likely be paying equal or more per year, or could offer more via enticing guarantees.
The question becomes, do the Bears get such a move done prior to free agency and the draft? In the Sneed scenario, a deal was reached on March 29th. So keep an eye peeled on any momentum over the next few days.
