L'Jarius Sneed played a significant role in preventing the San Francisco 49ers winning Super Bowl 58.

Now the former Kansas City Chiefs cornerback could have a significant influence on what San Francisco does in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Sneed was on Friday traded by the Chiefs to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for a third-round pick in 2025 and a seventh-round pick swap this year.

What is important for San Francisco, however, is not the terms of the trade, but the contract the Titans are set to give Sneed, who was franchise-tagged by the Chiefs to facilitate trade negotiations.

Per Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report, Sneed is set to sign a four-year, $76 million with an average annual value of $19 million and $55 million guaranteed, ample reward for a cornerback whose consistently stingy coverage was critical in the Chiefs' secondary frustrating the 49er offense in San Francisco's Super Bowl defeat last month.

For a 49ers team that has two starting cornerbacks set to hit free agency next offseason, that contract could complicate their plans for 2025.

Both Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir are scheduled to hit the open market next year.

Ward left the Chiefs to sign a three-year, 40.5 million contract with the 49ers in 2021 and has vindicated that deal by emerging as a top-tier starter. He was named second-team All-Pro last season after racking up 23 pass breakups and five interceptions while allowing a passer rating of just 64.3. Among cornerbacks with at least 50 targets, Ward ranked fourth in Sports Info Solutions' Points Saved metric.

He will still only be 28 when he hits free agency but, even with another impressive season, Ward might not have as much value as Lenoir, who built on a strong 2022 with a breakout 2023 season in which he excelled manning both the outside corner and slot positions.

Lenoir allowed a passer rating of just 56.4 and had 10 pass breakups and three interceptions. Though his counting stats weren't as impressive as those of Ward, with his versatility and his age — Lenoir does not turn 25 until October — he figures to cash in with another standout season.

As such, Ward and Lenoir may both be in a position to command a similar deal to Sneed, potentially making it difficult for the 49ers to keep both around long term.

Likely anticipating such a scenario, the Niners have done a lot of work on the cornerback position in the draft, including having a formal interview with potential first-rounder Kool-Aid McKinstry at the NFL Combine. With two players who could command very lucrative deals in the near future, selecting a rookie whom they would have on a comparatively cheap contract for as many as five years and who could step in to fill the void created by one of Ward or Lenoir leaving would be a very prudent move.

The Niners won't definitively decide on if and when to pick a cornerback based on Sneed's trade and what it might mean for the future of Ward and Lenoir. For a win-now team that added another starter in the secondary in Isaac Yiadom, there may still be higher priorities.

But the possibility of both their two top corners asking for contracts akin to that of Sneed will likely be a part of the 49ers' thinking when they decide on their plan of attack in a pivotal draft for a perennial contender.

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