After deploying the franchise tag on edge rusher Dee Ford, the Chiefs may be willing to trade the veteran linebacker/defensive end, and the price might not be all that steep. Kansas City is looking for a second-round pick in exchange for Ford, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

Fresh off a career year in 2018, Ford will be expensive next season. The linebacker franchise tag will cost $15.433MM, but there’s a chance Ford could push to earn even more. Ford is likely to file a grievance arguing that he’s a defensive end, and being tagged at that position would enable him to collect $17.128MM in 2019. That’s a hefty total, especially for a Chiefs team that only has roughly $10MM in cap space after accounting for Ford’s salary.

In addition to his cost, Ford’s role in new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo‘s 4-3 scheme has been questioned. Ford played defensive end in college, however, and the Chiefs faced three-plus wide receivers more than 80% of the time in 2018, per Warren Sharp. That means Kansas City was in nickel formations with Ford lined up as a pass-rusher. Indeed, Pro Football Focus charts Ford with only 107 coverage snaps all season, meaning concerns about a role change are likely overblown.

Ford, 27, hasn’t always been a star since entering the league as a first-round pick in 2014. He was relatively quiet in his first two pro campaigns before erupting for 10 sacks in 2016. An injury wiped out most of Ford’s 2017 season, but also forced the Chiefs to retain him via his injury-guaranteed fifth-year option. Ford subsequently posted the best results of his career, putting up 10 sacks and 48.5 pressures (second in the NFL) while grading as PFF’s 11th-best edge defender.

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