When looking at the list of players who were expected to be free agents this offseason, Kansas City Chiefs offensive guard Trey Smith was someone who intrigued a number of Minnesota Vikings fans.
With the Vikings needing to improve the interior of their offensive line, some believed Smith would have been a great addition to the team's roster in free agency this year. But any dreams that Minnesota fans had about the veteran guard ending up in the Twin Cities this offseason were just crushed by a recent report.
On Thursday, NFL Media's Ian Rapoport revealed that the Chiefs are reportedly expected to place the franchise tag on Smith to prevent him from signing with another team in free agency this year. The report takes him off the list of potential free-agent signings for the Vikings this offseason, and this year's pool of available guards in free agency just became much less intriguing.
Kansas City Chiefs taking Trey Smith off the market could be a blessing in disguise for Minnesota Vikings
While a bunch of Minnesota fans were hoping that the team could figure out a way to sign Smith this offseason, Kansas City reportedly taking him off the market could actually turn out to be a benefit for the Vikings.
First off, Smith was expected to be targeted by a bunch of teams in free agency this offseason, so if Minnesota was going to be the team that he signed with, his price would have likely been inflated as a result of a bidding war.
Spotrac.com's market value metric estimated that Smith was worth a deal that would pay him $19.7 million per year on the open market this offseason. That annual average number would have likely climbed over $20 million and possibly more as the result of a bidding war.
Smith has been solid for the Chiefs during his four seasons in the NFL, but did he do enough to be worth over $20 million per year? That's something that could definitely be debated, especially since his performance against 2024 playoff teams last season was significantly worse than his performance against teams that failed to qualify for the 2024 postseason.
Now, the Vikings can turn their attention to spending that money elsewhere, and there's a good chance that it will still be spent on a veteran guard in free agency. However, any amount that it will cost Minnesota for a new guard in free agency this year is likely going to be much less than what they would have had to pay to land Smith.