Tyreek Hill wanted the Kansas City Chiefs to make him the NFL's highest-paid receiver entering the 2022 season, and the franchise wasn't too interested in granting his wish. Instead, they elected to ship the six-time Pro Bowler to the Miami Dolphins on Wednesday, in exchange for five draft picks. And by day's end, Hill received a league-record $120 million extension from his new team.
Hill's six seasons with the Chiefs were insanely productive. In 2021, he had a franchise-high 111 receptions for 1,239 yards with nine scores, and according to ESPN Stats & Info, the 28-year-old is one of four players since 1970 with at least six touchdowns in each of his first six NFL seasons. Hill's numbers are quite impressive -- the same can be said about his speed and elusiveness -- but his exit isn't bad news for the franchise, according to Kansas City sports radio host Bob Fescoe. He believes that a breakup was inevitable.
"I don't know I've ever been more excited about a trade than I was for this one that went down," Fescoe told The Zach Gelb Show on Thursday. "Tyreek Hill is a guy who was planning on holding out, didn't want to be there anymore, and all he cared about was the biggest bag of money... I love this move. I'm more excited about this offseason maybe than I've ever been for the Chiefs. I can't wait to see what's next...
"When you're going to invest in your quarterback at $500 million, like they did with Mahomes, you have to count on him to make others around him better... Other than Kelce, if you hit that 28 or 29-year-old mark, they're not giving you a long-term deal, just because of how quickly players can age in this league... They got away from a guy who was leaving anyway after this season and were able to turn it into five draft picks."
In this blockbuster trade, the Chiefs' package included a 2022 first-round pick (No. 29 overall), a second-round pick (No. 50), a fourth-round pick, and 2023 fourth- and sixth-round picks. Although a player of Hill's caliber can't really be replaceable, Kansas City has added two noteworthy free agents wideouts this week, in Juju Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.
Since 2018, Mahomes had connected with Hill for 41 total touchdowns, which is the second-most by a quarterback-receiver duo during that time. Hill's also recorded 26 touchdowns on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield over the past five seasons, per ESPN Stats. The Chiefs currently have the second-best odds to represent a loaded AFC in Super Bowl 57 next February, according to the William Hill Sportsbook.
The entire Chiefs conversation between Fescoe and Gelb can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow The Zach Gelb Show on Twitter @ZachGelb and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.