Kansas City Chiefs willing to trade Brandon Flowers?
Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Brandon Flowers (24) tries to break up a pass. Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Brandon Flowers is usually one of the best cover men in the league, but he was an undeserving Pro Bowl recipient last season after a surprisingly underwhelming season. I view his struggles last year as an anomaly, but there have been rumors this offseason that the Chiefs could let him go due to his purported lack of fit in Bob Sutton’s pressing scheme, as well as his high salary and contract that doesn’t run out until 2017.
According to the Bleacher Report’s Dan Pompei, the Chiefs “are believed to be willing” to trade away Flowers for draft picks, but his $5.25 million salary for next season (a number that will only increase over the next few years) will scare off teams looking for cornerback help. Although Flowers was excellent from 2008-2012 (20 passes defended in 2011) and can excel in the slot or on the outside, his trade value is at an all-time low. He’s 28, coming off of the worst season of his career, it would require draft picks to acquire him, and he costs quite a bit. But if a team can find a way to soften the financial blow, then Flowers could be a nice acquisition and a big bounce-back candidate.
It will be interesting to see how serious the Chiefs are about trading Flowers, and that likely depends on if they truly believe he doesn’t fit Sutton’s defense. His value going forward is pretty much predicated on that, because he is less valuable to the Chiefs if he doesn’t fit their D and more valuable to other teams if his struggles last season were due to scheme rather than a sudden decline in ability.