Getty Carolina Panthers wide receiver D.J. Moore could be made available at the 2022 NFL trade deadline.
The Kansas City Chiefs just threw their fans into mass hysteria after restructuring Travis Kelce’s contract ahead of Week 7 — clearing $3.455M in cap space.
There’s a chance general manager Brett Veach was just freeing up some operating room with this contract adjustment but most analysts around the league believe a bigger move is on the way, and fans are buying in too.
While some have called for help at edge rusher or offensive tackle on social media, the loudest call to action from supporters has probably been at wide receiver with the new-look core struggling to get open in recent weeks. Fans even have a suggestion for Veach.
Dreaming About D.J. Moore to Chiefs Kingdom
After a frustrating start to the 2022 season, the Carolina Panthers have fired their head coach and begun shipping off talent — WR Robbie Anderson traded to Arizona. They are also reportedly listening to offers on stars like RB Christian McCaffrey and DE Brian Burns.
Those could be two names to watch for Kansas City as well, but fans have their eye on a 25-year-old weapon that would fit this offense perfectly — WR D.J. Moore.
Moore is a former first-round talent that was drafted 24th overall in 2018. He logged three straight 1,000-yard campaigns from 2019 through 2021 but has been completely wasted this season with Baker Mayfield and P.J. Walker at quarterback in Carolina.
After the cap move, Twitter immediately salivated at the idea of Moore playing with Patrick Mahomes II as the newsfeed flooded with trade theories.
FanSided betting analysts also put Moore to the Chiefs at +700, behind Green Bay and Baltimore, but it should be noted that these odds are based on unsourced opinion. SB Nation writer James Dator was less confident, giving a less than 10% chance that the wide receiver is traded in 2022 after signing a three-year extension over the offseason.
“The Panthers will not trade away Moore for peanuts. It’s going to take a first-rounder and then some to even make Carolina consider dealing their top receiver, and even then it feels like a long shot,” Dator voiced. “This team would sooner cut several players than take a bad deal for Moore, so any wistful imaginings of a playoff team getting a bargain can end right there.”
There are definitely some immediate issues that arise when dreaming about Moore to KC. For starters, his contract is large.
The playmaker’s 2022 cap hit is doable — $6.11 million if the Chiefs pay the entire amount — but he gets very expensive beyond that. Barring some sort of long-term restructuring, Moore is set to make a guaranteed salary of $19.965 million in 2023 ($25 million-plus cap hit), with cap hits of $20.9 million the two years after that.
Then there’s also the question of his availability. It appears that the Panthers would prefer to keep Moore due to his age and potential, rather than someone like “CMC” who may have reached their peak already. You’d likely have to blow them away with premier draft capital, and that plus the financial burden would be asking the Chiefs to take on a ton of risk.
At this time, this is definitely wishful thinking from Chiefs Kingdom, although another former first-round wide receiver could be had for pennies on the dollar.
Odell Beckham Jr. to Kansas City Makes More Sense
The much more polarizing wide receiver target is Odell Beckham Jr. After helping the Los Angeles Rams win a Super Bowl last season, “OBJ” finally proved that he could become a team player under the right circumstances.
Beckham has already confirmed that the Chiefs are on his shortlist of places to sign and we also know that Veach did his due diligence on bringing in the big name in 2021. Reportedly, Kansas City actually offered him a deal last year but was outbid by the Rams among others.
Pat McAfee led the OBJ to KC speculation on his show on October 18. “Is this [restructuring] for Odell Beckham Jr.?” McAfee asked his crew of co-hosts to a resounding yes.
“The Chiefs are a team that has the opportunity to go the long haul,” McAfee reasoned later, “Chiefs have a great offense, the Chiefs could use another weapon — why? Because the Chiefs use all their weapons. Odell Beckham Jr. being added to that crew over there would be the perfect Andy Reid move, it’d be perfect for Patrick Mahomes, and I can’t believe we are saying that this is definitely going to happen but that is why they opened up this cap space.”
McAfee is a bit bold with this take but two things do appear to be true. One, the Chiefs are buyers at the deadline — they’re competing for a Super Bowl and they might need a little bit more to push them past someone like Buffalo or Philadelphia. Two, a Beckham signing is a lot more realistic than a Moore trade if Veach decides to make wide receiver a priority.
It’s okay to dream Chiefs Kingdom, but it’s important to weigh fantasy versus reality.