Sports

Rams eager for Trent McDuffie to silence skeptics' last-ditch concern

Ramblin' Fan · Jul 21, 2026 19:00 · 3 min read

Rams eager for Trent McDuffie to silence skeptics' last-ditch concern — Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Los Angeles Rams are eager for cornerback Trent McDuffie to silence questions over whether he will be as effective as he was with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Apparently, the notion exists that cornerback Trent McDuffie will not be for the Los Angeles Rams what he was for the Chiefs: an elite, versatile force and a two-time All-Pro.

The argument goes like this. McDuffie is, after all, transitioning to a new system. The Chiefs are, after all, notoriously efficient in moving off players before the post-prime plummet begins. They moved off McDuffie. Perhaps the Rams fell right into the trap.

That, anyway, is what podcast host and ever-cheeky analyst Brandon Perna suggested in a recent appearance on "The Mina Kimes Show."

Make of Perna's take what you will, Rams fans cannot wait for McDuffie to put any inkling of skepticism to rest once the pads go on this season.

McDuffie will soon have his chance to squelch his skeptics

They'll get their first real look at McDuffie when training camp begins later this month. It's difficult to take too much away from OTAs when it comes to evaluating defenders. The non-contact rules sort of get in the way.

McDuffie's game is built on tight, physical coverage and his ability to line up all over the secondary - on the boundary, in the slot, even creeping up in the box for run support. We'll only get to see his real self in action when the season starts.

True, for being recognized among the top five at his position, McDuffie is not an overly impressive playmaker. All three of his career picks have come in the past two seasons. He did record five forced fumbles and three sacks in his 2023 All-Pro First Team campaign, and set co-career highs with 80 tackles and nine quarterback hits, but that is by far his splashiest season stat line.

It's also completely reasonable to argue that the Rams overpaid for McDuffie by sending out four draft picks, including a 2026 first-rounder, in the trade. Objectively, that's probably right. Los Angeles is going all-in on the here and now.

Nonetheless, McDuffie is held in very high esteem around the league - refer back to his Top 5 ranking - and graded out 12th among 114 qualified corners, per PFF. He ranked 18th in coverage and 11th in run defense.

A stalwart tackler, he ranked 24th in stops, with 20, despite being limited by injury to 688 snaps, which ranked 58th according to PFF. He missed four tackles all year (16th-fewest), and allowed only 9.2 yards per catch (10th-fewest).

Yes, McDuffie is two years removed from his best season and missed four games in 2025. He also won't turn 26 until September and is in prime condition. Acting like he's about to fall off a la L'Jarius Sneed, who was traded after four years in Kansas City and hasn't done much of anything since, might be low-hanging fruit for skeptics to reach for, but that doesn't make it a sound comparison.

McDuffie is, for one thing, simply a more productive player. Even as Sneed has outdone McDuffie in interception totals (10 for his career), he has never made a Pro Bowl or All-Pro team. His highest Approximate Value score, per Pro Football Reference, is six. He accumulated 20 AV in four Chiefs seasons covering 57 games.

McDuffie, meanwhile, posted AVs of 15 and 11 in 2023 and '24 alone. While it's fair to call his 2025 season a down year - thus matching Kansas City's season as a whole - it's rather ridiculous to question his ability. Rams fans should be more than willing to risk eating those words.