Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson (10) returns a punt against the Minnesota Vikings in the third quarter at Mall of America Field at H.H.H. Metrodome. The Vikings win 48-30. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
Philadelphia Eagles star wide receiver DeSean Jackson is on the chopping block, and there’s no doubt about that now. But Jackson is so pricey at $10.5 million in 2014 and $9.75 million in 2015 and 2016 that teams simply aren’t going to trade for him, and it wouldn’t even make sense for anybody to trade for him. Not only would they have to find a way to clear out around $10 million in cap space, but they would also be paying a guy $10.5 million when his team desperately wants to get rid of him despite his talent; that’s a massive red flag.
The Kansas City Chiefs have a big need for a true No. 1 wide receiver, because Dwayne Bowe is really just a good WR2. Jackson would make a good amount of sense for the Chiefs due to his talent, the upgrade he would give for Alex Smith, his playmaking ability, and the fact that he’s worked with Andy Reid. Just don’t expect the Chiefs to pay premium for him, which is a pretty obvious statement.
According to the Kansas City Star’s Terez A. Paylor, the Chiefs are indeed not expected to go after D-Jax until he is cut. Since I doubt anybody in their right mind would trade a pick of significance and pay up to a player unwilling to take a paycut, I fully expect Jackson to hit the free agent waters. I expect the Chiefs to be one of his suitors, but I also think it’s more likely that he lands somewhere else. I feel like John Dorsey will want to go in another direction at the position (the draft), because Jackson probably wouldn’t be cheap on the open market either, even if he’ll be considerably cheaper than $10.5 million.