The best move the Kansas City Chiefs ever made was when they traded with the Buffalo Bills to move from No. 27 to No. 10 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft.
The Chiefs selected quarterback Patrick Mahomes with the pick, while sending Buffalo their original No. 27 pick along with No. 91 overall and No. 22 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft. That move marked the first time that the Chiefs selected a QB in the first round since 1983 when they took Todd Blackledge.
Fastforward six years later, it’s safe to say that K.C. won the trade. The Chiefs have won the most regular season games in the NFL, have played in six AFC Championship games and won three Super Bowls during that span. That kind of success simply does not occur had they not drafted Mahomes.
Since taking over as the Chiefs’ starting QB in 2018, Mahomes has won two MVPs, three Super Bowl MVPs and is poised to set the team record for passing yards and touchdowns in 2024. He is also a six-time Pro Bowler, three-time All-Pro and was the 2018 NFL Offensive Player of the Year.
As for the Bills, the returns of the trade were not as fruitful. Their crown jewel of the trade was Tre’Davious White, who has been one of the best cornerbacks in the league since his rookie season. Buffalo also acquired cornerback Siran Neal, receiver Zay Jones and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds in the deal with K.C.
Edmunds made the Pro Bowl twice as a Bill but didn’t get a second contract with the team as he signed with the Chicago Bears in 2023. Jones was traded in his third season with the Bills after a disappointing tenure, and Neal was a solid special teams player and rotational defensive back.
Joseph Hefner of K.C. Sports Network noted that the blockbuster deal between the Chiefs and Bills came full circle on Wednesday when Buffalo released the final two players -White and Neal- whom they drafted from the trade.
The boldness of the Chiefs’ brass back in 2017 paid off big time. Many draft experts considered Mahomes a risky pick with his unorthodox footwork and gunslinger mentality, but K.C. decided his talent was worth the risk. Andy Reid has been the perfect coach and mentor to maximize Mahomes’ skillset.
The Bills have had plenty of regular season success since making the trade, but also a lot of postseason heartbreak. To make matter worse, most of that heartbreak has come at the hands of Mahomes and the Chiefs, with K.C. eliminating Buffalo from the playoffs in three of the last four years.
The Bills are now faced with having to re-tool their roster on a tight budget due to salary cap issues, while the Chiefs will continue to try to and keep their dynasty rolling for the next several years.
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