Peter King: Chiefs called all 31 teams about Peters, 28 passed or offered little

[pugsnotdrugs19]

Since everything negative on the Chiefs side seems to get its own thread...

The Chiefs called all 31 other teams about Marcus Peters. 28 took a hard pass or offered nothing of value. @SI_PeterKing on why Kansas City moved on from its star cornerback: https://t.co/EAVdfM504G pic.twitter.com/ppLh2tJQlg

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 27, 2018

STORY BELOW

For the Chiefs, Marcus Peters Wasn’t Worth the Trouble—and Only Three Other Teams Had Any Interest

Spoiler!

Peter King
February 27th, 2018

Day by day, we learn more about the Chiefs-Rams trade that netted Los Angeles a 25-year-old star cornerback, Marcus Peters. On Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported the terms of the deal: Kansas City dealt Peters to Los Angeles for a fourth-round pick this year (the 124th overall pick) and a second-round pick next year.

The compensation, even for a problem player like Peters, seemed light to me. The Rams won 11 games in 2017, and if they win a similar number next year, they’d likely have a second-round pick in the low 50s. So, let’s say Peters was acquired for the 124th pick in 2018 and 58th pick in 2019.

Seems like the Rams got a heck of a deal for a 25-year-old turnover-creating machine who’s been named to two Pro Bowls in his three seasons and was All-Pro in 2016.

Now I’ll tell you a few reasons why the compensation was as light as it was:

• I’m told the Chiefs called all 31 other teams in the league this month on Peters, looking for a trade partner, and 28 teams either said they were not interested or did not make an offer of any value. For a player with the playing history of Peters at a vital and hard-to-fill position, that’s amazing. One team made an offer of a mid-round pick, laughable for a player of Peters’ age and stature. (My guess is that was Cleveland or Indianapolis.) Two were in it until the end—the Rams and 49ers. And the Rams’ offer of second- and fourth-round picks was evidently better than San Francisco’s.

• The fact that a GM who knew Peters very well—Indianapolis’ Chris Ballard—did not pursue Peters hard for the Colts this month was viewed as telling by several other teams in the league. Ballard was the Chiefs’ director of player personnel in 2015, and visited Peters and his parents that spring at their Oakland home, before the draft. He was in favor of the Chiefs picking Peters, which they did in the first round of the 2015 draft, 18th overall. Clearly, Ballard would have a pipeline to the inner feelings of the Chiefs, and when he didn’t engage the Chiefs seriously, one source close to the deal said it was a telling sign. However, there is one counterpoint to this: Because the Colts are in full rebuilding mode, they’re not a great fit right now for a very good player who could be a handful, and who could leave in free agency in two years.

• Those around the Chiefs saw there was life after Marcus. The team played one of its best defensive games of the season last year without Peters. He got suspended for a game by the Chiefs for freaking out on the field in a Week 13 loss at the Jets, throwing a penalty flag into the stands and stalking off the field while the game was in play though he had not been ejected. The next week, without Peters, Kansas City held Oakland to 104 total yards and no points through 48 minutes, building up a 26-0 lead. The Chiefs won the game, 26-15.

• The fact that the Chiefs were calling every team in the league about Peters let teams know that Kansas City coach Andy Reid and GM Brett Veach were desperate to dump him.

• Peters’ behavior had become erratic, apparently, capped by the Week 13 meltdown in the Meadowlands. The Chiefs decided they couldn’t trust his behavior anymore and, despite his playmaking ability, felt whatever they could fetch for him in trade would be better than Peters returning in 2018.

• His protests during the national anthem didn’t help—at various points he raised his fist, sat on the bench and stayed in the locker room—but weren’t the driving force behind a trade.

• Peters loves football. He practiced hard in Kansas City. But his tendency to lose it was a divisive part of his résumé too, and a big reason why the Chiefs dumped him.

So, did the Rams make a bad trade?

I don’t think so. The Rams have a defensive coordinator, Wade Phillips, who has handled high-maintenance players, and who puts great cover corners like Peters in position to maximize their ability and earning power. Peters is due $10.7 million over the next two years, very reasonable for a player who at his peak is a shutdown cornerback and one of the best in the league. So even if the Rams don’t keep him after 2019, they’ve (theoretically) paid $10.7 million over two years for a cornerback who should be supremely motivated to be great. It’s the only way he’s going to get paid Revis money.

In the end, Peters’ temper and disposition probably cost him a long career in Kansas City. But talent always gets a second chance (and a third, if the talent is as big as Peters’), and the Rams are betting that Sean McVay and Phillips and a more forgiving environment will be a good new start for a very good player.

[SuperBowl4]

Originally Posted by notorious

Chiefs trying to save face.

Yeah right.

[rabblerouser]

Originally Posted by Chiefnj2

Because Peters has to agree to play for the new team. A team is going to give up a draft picks in April (and future picks) and run the risk Peters doesn't show up?

Exactly.

Reading comprehension in 2018 is absolutely atrocious.

So many people have either not read or don't realize what it meant when it said that the Chiefs granted the teams permission to speak with MP, and Peters told them all that he will only sign a long term deal with a California team and will bail for a team in California as soon as his current deal is up.

No one is going to give up a first rounder for someone who's going to bolt for another team (or the penitentiary) in 2 years.

That left 2 teams willing to entertain the idea - SF and LAR. Rams offered a slighter bigger bag of dicks.

Take it and move on. He's the Rams' problem now.

[Dayze]

Originally Posted by rabblerouser

Exactly.

Reading comprehension in 2018 is absolutely atrocious.

So many people have either not read or don't realize what it meant when it said that the Chiefs granted the teams permission to speak with MP, and Peters told them all that he will only sign a long term deal with a California team and will bail for a team in California as soon as his current deal is up.

No one is going to give up a first rounder for someone who's going to bolt for another team (or the penitentiary) in 2 years.

That left 2 teams willing to entertain the idea - SF and LAR. Rams offered a slighter bigger bag of dicks.

Take it and move on. He's the Rams' problem now.

Yep.

he's dead to me.
hope Hunt, or anyone else for that matter, absolutely trucks him. Won't happen though. To get trucked, you have to actually be in somewhat of a tackling position.

[BossChief]

Having Peters on the same team as Revis probably lead to some interesting conversations about compensation.

Revis was the ultimate mercenary and got crazy money in every deal.

I’m sure Peters will be the same way.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Chiefnj2

Because Peters has to agree to play for the new team. A team is going to give up a draft picks in April (and future picks) and run the risk Peters doesn't show up?

No, he doesn't.

But why in the world would he not play in 2018, meaning he's giving up League Service AND a paycheck?

That's ridiculous.

[Sassy Squatch]

Has there been anything from his teammates about his departure? Kendall Fuller had guys blowing the **** up on Twitter when he was announced as being in the trade, but I haven't seen a single thing in regards to Peters.

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by Superturtle

Has there been anything from his teammates about his departure? Kendall Fuller had guys blowing the **** up on Twitter when he was announced as being in the trade, but I haven't seen a single thing in regards to Peters.

I'm guessing the team has specifically asked players to stay quiet. I'm sure both sides understand its better to let the story lay low and die out.

[threebag]

Originally Posted by HemiEd

I am excited to see how this team plays now without the giant tumor.

Yep

[threebag]

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

I'm guessing the team has specifically asked players to stay quiet. I'm sure both sides understand its better to let the story lay low and die out.

Maybe they don't want to show any public support of him so they kept it personal.

[Iowanian]

People keep dismissing the picks the Chiefs have obtained in these trades.....
Let's review some of the players the Chiefs have gotten with these spots(I'll leave out the turds because that isn't the point I'm making)

Jared Allen 4th round
Brandon Flowers 2nd
Jamaal Charles 3rd
Rodney Hudson 2nd
Justin Houston 3rd
Allen Bailey 3rd
Travis Kelce 3rd
Chris Jones 2nd
Kareem Hunt 3rd
Tyreek Hill 5th

IF used properly, the picks obtained from Smith and Peters could make a big difference in the future of this team. They're not throw-away picks unless they get used on some Turd McBride....

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by threebag02

Maybe they don't want to show any public support of him so they kept it personal.

Yup. I don't think support or criticism of him helps. Don't want to support and undermine your team. Don't want to criticize and create smoke. Best option is to say nothing. Different from Fuller or Alex Smith. Their value was totally performance related.

[SuperBowl4]

Glad they found a sucker to take him. Job well done! GO CHIEFS!

[pugsnotdrugs19]

Albert Breer insider info on Peters: http://amp.si.com/nfl/2018/03/01/dra...mpression=true

3. Chiefs letting Peters walk. Social media seems to have decided that the Rams stole an all-pro corner from the Chiefs at a measly price. And as always, you should be careful with what you read on social media. There are reasons Marcus Peters went 18th overall in the 2015 draft, despite being a consensus Top 10 talent, and those aren’t much different than the reasons he was available this month. You know some of those. There was Peters tossing a penalty flag into the stands against the Jets in December. There was the subsequent suspension. And there was a very public sideline confrontation with a coach that called to mind the fight with a Washington coach that got Peters thrown off his college team in 2014.

The bottom line: the Chiefs lost confidence in Peters’ ability to fix his behavioral issues and amend his reputation as a high-maintenance star. It also went well beyond just what the public saw. “There’s more to a regular season than just game day,” said one source. “Lots of stuff goes on Monday through Saturday and that’s stuff that only the people within those walls see. You saw the two other guys who used to be in those walls (and how they reacted to his availability).” Those two guys: Browns GM John Dorsey and Colts GM Chris Ballard. Neither showed much interest at all when their former lieutenant, Chiefs GM Brett Veach, called, and those two were atop the team’s scouting operation when Peters was drafted and for his first two years in the league. So as good as Peters is, and he’s got the ability to be great, he’s got a ton of baggage.

I can say that believing that he went to the absolute right place. Rams coach Sean McVay has the ability to connect with players, and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips has a knack for managing big personalities, and so if there was of list of places that Peters should be able to get his house in order, Los Angeles would be near the top of it. That makes it worth the gamble of a 2019 second-round pick, and swap of later-round picks this year (a 4 going to KC; and a 6 going back to LA). But even if that dice roll pays off for the Rams, it’s understandable why the Chiefs felt the need to move on.

[TEX]

I'm over it. He's gone. **** it and him.

[Mother****erJones]

Originally Posted by TEX

I'm over it. He's gone. **** it and him.

Same. I like Peters. One of my favorite players but I’m on to the new era.