Should the Kansas City Chiefs reboot their running back room by trading with the Giants for former No 2 overall running back Saquon Barkley?
The Chiefs have lost their leading receiver and rusher from 2021, making this coming season full of intrigue around Patrick Mahomes and the offense.
Replacing Tyreek Hill has involved picking up guys like JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling while drafting Skyy Moore.
Darrel Williams’ departure to Arizona isn’t as massive as Hill’s. However, the running back room is a major question mark for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
How could Kansas City address that concern? Bleacher Report’s Ian Wharton suggests a trade for Giants running back Saquon Barkley.
Does a Saquon Barkley trade make sense for the Chiefs?
This hypothetical trade would have the Chiefs send Clyde Edwards-Helaire and a fourth-round pick to the Giants for Barkley.
The argument here is simple: The Chiefs aren’t sold on CEH, so they should go after someone with a higher upside.
That’s fair enough but it still feels early to give up on Edwards-Helaire, especially because he’s been limited by some injury issues. This third year will be critical for him and his future with Kansas City. He deserves that chance to prove himself after rushing for 803 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie. Remember, he’s only 23.
Meanwhile, Barkley has dealt with serious injury problems and there are still no guarantees he’ll return to the player he was in 2018.
Trading for Barkley or keeping CEH is a gamble with uncertain odds either way. The latter doesn’t involve giving up any assets.
The real issue with a trade is that the Chiefs shouldn’t be so desperate. They have Edwards-Helaire and Jerick McKinnon coming back while adding Ronald Jones II to the equation.
Jones rushed for 978 yards for the Buccaneers in 2020, contributing to a Super Bowl run. He’s also 24 years old with more to give if the fit is right.
That backfield should be productive enough to hold down the fort at worst.