Getty Kansas City Chiefs starting left tackle Orlando Brown Jr.
The Kansas City Chiefs franchise tagged starting left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. last offseason and could do the same this offseason, albeit at a $20 million price tag. But what if the team instead opted to trade away their four-time Pro Bowler instead of tagging him or signing him to a long-term extension?
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell believes that could very well be in play for the defending Super Bowl champions.
“If the Jets don’t trade the No. 13 overall pick to the Packers for Aaron Rodgers, I wonder if a Brown deal involving that first-rounder (and picks going back to the Jets with Brown) might make sense,” Barnwell wrote. “The teams picking in the top quarter of the second round could also be candidates for a Brown trade.”
Brown Had a Stellar Super Bowl Run
Orlando Brown Jr., 26, had a lot to prove during the 2022 season after a mediocre 2021 campaign.
During the 2022 regular season, Brown played in all 17 games and allowed 47 total pressures (36 QB hurries, 7 QB hits, 4 sacks), which was a career-high (his previous career-high was 36 total pressures in 2021), according to PFF. Though it wasn’t a stellar regular season for a player looking for a big payday, his postseason performance quieted most of his critics.
In three playoff games, Brown surrendered 11 total pressures (8 QB hurries, 3 QB hits), none of which were sacks. Brown was part of a Kansas City offensive line that didn’t surrender a single sack during the team’s Super Bowl run, which included a Super Bowl matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, who had a league-leading 70 sacks during the regular season, per StatMuse.
In 3 games and 191 offensive snaps in the postseason, Orlando Brown Jr. committed 1 penalty and allowed 0 sacks.
Orlando Brown Jr. has earned that contract extension.
Should Chiefs Be Looking to Trade Brown?
Based on the free agent market and where the Chiefs are picking in the 2023 NFL Draft, trading Brown should be a last resort for the team.
Among the top names available in free agency at left tackle this offseason are recently-cut veteran Taylor Lewan (31), former Chief Eric Fisher (32), and Kelvin Beachum (33). None of those players play at a high enough level at this point in their careers to be considered full-time starters on a Super Bowl contender.
According to PFF’s offensive tackle rankings for the 2023 draft class, there are only four players (all of which are left tackles) with an initial first-round grade. Because of that, there’s a chance that none of those players will be available when the Chiefs pick last in the first round. That means they would have to either reach for an offensive tackle or wait until the second round to select one, which isn’t out of the realm of possibility but isn’t the ideal approach to finding a franchise left tackle.
Due to all of this, the defending Super Bowl champions need to do everything they can to sign Brown to a long-term deal. If they can’t, then they need to franchise tag him and potentially draft his successor in April. The Chiefs could also tag Brown and then attempt to sign a free agent such as Laremy Tunsil or Donovan Smith in 2024 and let Brown walk in free agency next offseason.