Arrowhead Pride
Kansas City’s top cornerback can be used anywhere, so how should the team use the players around him?
For the third straight year, I’m considering the 10 biggest questions I have for the Kansas City Chiefs for 2025.
As long as I do this series, I will continue to ask how Trent McDuffie should be used. It will be a relevant question before every season he’s with the team, because he could be a perennial All-Pro as a slot or outside cornerback. That makes him a rare football player. In my opinion, there’s only one other NFL cornerback who can meet that standard: the Denver Broncos’ Patrick Surtain II.
His presence on the roster is a luxury not only for defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, — who can use him in either position on any play — but also for general manager Brett Veach, who can adjust McDuffie’s primary role to fit the team’s roster needs.
As a rookie in 2022, McDuffie began as an outside cornerback. But by the end of the season, the Chiefs had found a better version of their defense where he played in the slot. So the following season, he locked down the inside while L’Jarius Sneed took care of the outside receivers. Without Sneed in 2024, McDuffie went back to the outside — and continued to play extremely well.
We’ve learned that wherever McDuffie plays, he will be a high-impact player. So let’s examine where he will provide the maximum benefit in 2025.
Personally, I like McDuffie best in the slot. There, he can blitz and play a role in the run fit — but it’s a marginal difference. The real question is how the team can best use its other players around him.
If McDuffie plays in the slot, Kristian Fulton and Jaylen Watson would be the two obvious candidates to play outside.
In 2024, the Chiefs played more quarters-based coverages. If they continue to do that this season, I think Fulton and Watson will be strong scheme fits. We’ve seen Watson be a good zone corner, while Fulton has always been at his best in zone.
Unfortunately, Fulton has often been injured during his career. What happens if he misses time? Would the Chiefs move McDuffie to the outside? Or would they use rookie cornerback Nohl Williams in Fulton’s spot? I don’t think it would be too challenging for Kansas City to make either adjustment, but it’s an interesting conversation.
Given that the team is paying him a lot of money, I think Fulton would be the other outside corner if the team decides to use McDuffie on the outside. In that situation, I would expect Chamarri Conner to be the slot defender. While he has some limitations in coverage, he’d be good in the slot, where he can use his skills as a run defender and a blitzer — especially when the Chiefs are in nickel and two-high safety shells.
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