Denver Broncos: Marcus Peters trade and impact on Aqib Talib
The Kansas City Chiefs traded Marcus Peters to the Los Angeles Rams. What does this mean for Aqib Talib going forward? We explore…
The Kansas City Chiefs have apparently made their second wild trade of the 2018 offseason, agreeing to trade Pro Bowl cornerback Marcus Peters to the Los Angeles Rams.
The compensation for Peters is not yet know.
Adam Schefter reported and confirmed the deal on Friday…
Marcus Peters to LA Rams trade is now officially agreed to, per source; cannot be processed until March 14. But Peters expected to be a Ram.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 23, 2018
We’re eagerly anticipating what the Rams may have given up for Peters, but this trade makes sense from their perspective, even if they had to give up their first round pick to get it done.
Peters is just 25 years old, and counts $1.71 million against the cap this year. Next year, he will cost less than $10 million against the cap. The year after that — in 2020, when Peters is still just 27 — the Rams will be able to franchise tag him.
This is a long-term move for the Rams and they could reasonably get three years of Peters while paying vastly under market value for him.
Thus, this is a great trade for Los Angeles, regardless of the compensation (unless it’s ridiculous, like two first rounders).
This is not a good trade for the Chiefs, who had a lot of other players they could unload instead of Peters this offseason. This was not a move to dump salary, nor was it a move made because Peters isn’t good at football. This was a move made because the relationship between Peters and the Chiefs soured, and they wanted to get maximum value.
That brings us to Aqib Talib, who is expected to be on the trade block for the Broncos this offseason.
The Broncos will not likely make any sort of move on Talib until they are able to secure a quarterback, but they will undoubtedly gauge the market between now and the start of free agency in about three weeks.
Understanding that Peters is both younger and significantly cheaper than Talib, the value the Broncos will get in a trade for what I believe to be a better all-around player (Peters is one of the least interested tacklers in the entire NFL) will likely be unchanged by the cost the Rams paid to acquire Peters.
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Talib — to me — is worth a day two selection. I don’t know if teams are going to pay up for what he’s worth, but even at the age of 32, Talib is playing some of the best football of his life, he hasn’t lost anything athletically, and he’s got two years left on his contract with an average of $10 million per season.
This year, he costs $12 million, but next year, some team is going to be getting a bargain of Talib on a one-year, $8 million.
He will be more expensive to acquire as a free agent (financially) so getting him in a trade makes a ton of sense.
I think a team will ultimately be willing to part with a third round pick for Talib, even though that seems like a steep price. At worst, I could see the Broncos settling for a fourth round pick, or even a player-for-player trade that would also save the Broncos some salary cap space.
The Broncos should — by no means — let Talib walk and just cut him if they are planning on letting him go, unless they absolutely have to. There will be a large demand for Talib’s services.