The Kansas City Chiefs are perhaps the strongest bet in the NFL to trade for a wide receiver at some point over the next 10 days, and the name of Jacksonville Jaguars wideout Brian Thomas Jr. keeps coming up.
ESPN’s Ben Solak predicted that Thomas, who has all but fallen out of the rotation for the Jaguars in his third season, will end up on the trade block and ultimately in a Kansas City uniform at some point next week.
“This AFC South matchup [between the Colts and Jaguars] features the top two players on our trade candidate rankings. And I’m predicting that both playmakers will take their final snaps with the teams that drafted them Sunday,” Solak wrote. “With another loss, the Colts could probably move [Jonathan] Taylor for two Day 2 picks. Meanwhile, another empty stat line for Thomas leads him to … the Chiefs?”
Chiefs Face Unique Obstacle in Trading for Brian Thomas Jr.
Kansas City and Jacksonville don’t have a long and storied rivalry, or even a short and storied one during the Patrick Mahomes era, mainly because Jacksonville hasn’t been all that good all that often while the Chiefs have been a dynastic group going on near a decade.
However, the Jaguars (4-2) are very much a threat to win the AFC this year, while the Chiefs (5-1) can say the same. And even though the teams don’t play during the regular season, the chances they could meet in a playoff round on the way to the Super Bowl are reasonably likely.
That potential reality, and the fact that both teams have strong designs on competing at the top of conference for years to come, is perhaps the biggest obstacle to Thomas landing in Kansas City.
It makes plenty of sense for the Jaguars to trade him, but maybe not to a team with a knack for winning big games in January and February who can revitalize the 24-year-old wideout’s career with the help of a legendary QB in Mahomes and a future Hall of Fame coach in Andy Reid.
Brian Thomas Jr. Has Seen Play, Opportunites Diminish Over Past 2 Years
Thomas tallied 87 catches for 1,282 yards and 10 TDs on 133 targets as a rookie. This season, he’s seen just 20 passes come his way across six games, catching nine of them for 105 yards and a single score.
At this point, he needs a fresh start with one year remaining on his $14.7 million rookie contract and a team option in 2028 for whichever franchise holds his contract rights next May.
Given Thomas’s age, salary, previous performance and upside — not to mention what the Houston Texans paid the Arizona Cardinals for Marvin Harrison Jr. — Jacksonville can probably command a second-round pick for Thomas.
The Jaguars might squeeze even more out of the Chiefs given the risk that trading Thomas to Kansas City represents in Jacksonville, as well as how desperate the Chiefs are to add talent to their WR room before the deadline passes.
Chiefs Predicted to Trade for Rival $14 Million WR Next Week