Trading Down Can Help, Hurt

Mar 21, 2008, 3:54:21 AM by Bob Gretz - FAQ

Buyer beware. But the same goes for the seller, especially when what’s being sold is position in the first round of the NFL Draft.

There’s been a lot of talk around Arrowhead Stadium about the Chiefs fifth spot in the first round and the desire to trade down from that spot. The idea of course is to pick up extra picks, especially those in the money rounds like the second and third.

History, however, has shown the Chiefs have seldom gotten anything out of trading down in the first round.

Dropping in the round only works if those extra draft picks acquired in a trade pay off in talent. In three cases since 1989, the Chiefs have traded down in the first round. In total, the deals resulted in 10 draft choices with seven extra picks

Yet, two of those seven never played a regular season game for the Chiefs; one never even played a pre-season game. And, if you knew that the best performer among those seven added choices was wide receiver Samie Parker, would that tell you trading down isn’t always the way to go.

It’s the good, the bad and the ugly when it has come to the Chiefs trading down in the first round.

GOOD/2003
The Chiefs traded the 16th selection in the first round to Pittsburgh. In exchange, they received the Steelers first-round choice (27th), third-round selection (92nd) and sixth round pick (200th).

Pittsburgh drafted safety Troy Polamalu at No. 16.

The Chiefs selected running back Larry Johnson and cornerback Julian Battle. They traded the sixth-round selection to the New York Jets in a deal that produced defensive lineman Jimmy Wilkerson.

While not without its warts, this deal worked out for the Chiefs. After a non-descript start to his career, Johnson has proven himself to be among the best running backs in the NFL. He enters the 2008 season having played in 56 games and running for 4,764 yards and 56 career touchdowns.

Battle was a bust on the cornerback, playing in 26 games over two seasons, with one start. He had 13 defensive tackles and seven tackles on special teams. This was especially hurtful because it came at a time when the Chiefs were trying desperately to fill holes on the corner. They ended up spending big money and draft choices in trading for Pat Surtain and then spending even more free agent dollars in signing Ty Law for two seasons.

Wilkerson played in 72 games with five starts over five seasons. He had one sack and 97 total tackles, along with 41 tackles on special teams, including 13 last season. He recently signed as an unrestricted free agent with Tampa Bay.

Among the players the Chiefs did not get a chance to draft because they moved down were Polamalu, linebacker Calvin Pace, center Jeff Faine, quarterback Rex Grossman, running back Willis McGahee and tight end Dallas Clark.

BAD/2004
The Chiefs traded the 30th choice in the first round to Detroit. In exchange they received the Lions second-round pick (36th), fourth round choice (105th) and a fifth-round selection in 2005.

Detroit drafted running back Kevin Jones at No. 30.

The Chiefs selected defensive tackle Junior Siavii, wide receiver Samie Parker and in the 2005 draft they drafted cornerback Alphonso Hodge.

Ouch! Siavii proved to be one of several wasted defensive tackle choices from the Vermeil Era drafts. He played in 26 games, contributing 27 tackles and one sack. He’s not played again in the NFL after the Chiefs released him in the 2006 pre-season.

Parker played four non-descript seasons with the Chiefs, appearing in 47 games with 31 starts. He had 110 catches for 1,529 yards and seven touchdowns. As the other receiver with Eddie Kennison, Parker was too inconsistent to become a major threat in the offense where he was usually the fourth receiving option behind Tony Gonzalez, Kennison and when he was healthy, Priest Holmes.

Hodge never played in a regular season game for the Chiefs, and has not played for anyone else.

By moving down, the Chiefs missed out on six players, including a couple of good ones in linebacker Karlos Dansby, guard Chris Snee and defensive tackle Igor Olshansky.

UGLY/1995
The Chiefs traded the 19th selection in the first round to Jacksonville. In exchange, they received the Jaguars first-round choice (31st), third-round pick (97th), fourth-round selection (134) and a 1996 fourth-round choice.

Jacksonville drafted running back James Stewart at No. 19.

The Chiefs selected tackle Trezelle Jenkins, linebacker Troy Dumas and quarterback Steve Stenstrom. The ‘96 choice was packaged with another choice and traded away in a separate deal the next season that helped the Chiefs trade up to get linebacker Donnie Edwards in the fourth round.

Other than providing some help to get Edwards, the deal was a disaster for the Chiefs. Jenkins rates as one of the greatest draft day busts in franchise history. In three seasons he played in nine games and made one start. Two weeks after that single start, he was released and he never again played in the league.

Dumas played 14 games with the Chiefs in 1996-97, contributing 14 tackles on special teams. He played two games in the ‘98 season with St. Louis.

Stenstrom never played a down for the Chiefs. He missed his entire rookie training camp and pre-season in a contract holdout. Eventually he was signed after the season started, then released, in hopes that he could be placed on the practice squad. But Stenstrom was claimed on waivers by Chicago and he ended up playing 17 games and starting 10 over three seasons with the Bears and 49ers. In his career he had four touchdown passes against 12 interceptions.

Among those players that the Chiefs did not get a chance to draft in the first round by dropping from 19th to 31st were defensive end Luther Ellis, cornerback Ty Law, tight end Mark Bruener and linebacker Derrick Brooks. Those 12 players played an average of 115 games in the NFL, with Law, Bruener and Brooks still active last season.

The three players acquired by the Chiefs in the deal played a total of 23 games.

AFTERMATH
So in those three deals we can tie nine players directly to the Chiefs. Only three became starters (Edwards, Johnson and Parker.) Only one was a frequently used backup (Wilkerson.) The other six played in a total of 75 games with two starts. That’s an average of 12.5 games per those six players, or not even a full season of 16 games.

Seller beware.

The opinions offered in this column do not necessarily reflect those of the Kansas City Chiefs.

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A former beat reporter who covered the Pittsburgh Steelers during their glory years, Gretz covered the Chiefs for the Kansas City Star for nine years. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Board of Selectors. He has been the senior columnist for the Chiefs web site since its inception.