If you look at any ranking of the top cornerbacks at work in the National Football League this year, there are a shocking number of Kansas City Chiefs. Well, make that former Chiefs. From Kendall Fuller to Charvarius Ward to L'Jarius Sneed, preseason rankings at the position heading into another are littered with former Chiefs who left for greener pastures (read: more money) in recent years.
The good news is that one such player remains: Trent McDuffie.
McDuffie, who only has 1.5 seasons under his belt at the professional level, is already entrenched alongside (or in some cases ahead of) the aforementioned names. He was a first-round pick by the Chiefs in the famed 2022 class along with George Karlaftis, acquired after a trade up with the New England Patriots from No. 29 to 21 in the draft order.
McDuffie came into the NFL as a celebrated corner prospect known for his fluid skill set and incredible instincts, but he's beaten all projections in such a short time at the NFL level. Even after missing a half-season with a hamstring issue to start his NFL career, he came in and immediately claimed an impactful starting role for a Super Bowl champ midway through the '22 season.
There's a reason the Chiefs felt comfortable enough to trade away L'Jarius Sneed one year after losing Charvarius Ward and that's the presence of McDuffie. He's a lockdown corner who can play inside and out and is capable of stopping the run while defending the boundary on the next passing attempt.
Analysts took quick notice of McDuffie and he's become a staple of top cornerback rankings heading into his third season. Dallas Robinson of the Pro Football Network ranked Trent McDuffie at No. 7 on his list coming into the season. Jared Dubin thinks even more of McDuffie and placed him at No. 5 over at CBS Sports.
Yet perhaps the single greatest note of future stardom here is found in Pro Football Focus's rankings where McDuffie is second to Sauce Gardner of the New York Jets among cornerbacks. After highlighting his "elite all-around game", they rank him at No. 2 overall in front of Sneed, Ward, and others.
Given that last year was McDuffie's first full season in the NFL, his ceiling should scare opposing offensive coordinators knowing that the Chiefs have such a diverse and effective weapon in the secondary—a pillar to match the work of Chris Jones up front. Combine that with the number of primetime games on the Chiefs' schedule and you have a recipe for a player becoming a household name in 2024.
