RADIO
Rob looks at the Kansas City Chiefs and looks at what kind of offseason assets they have, both financially and draft capital wise. Their top three positional needs are identified.
The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl Champions once again. They have now won back-to-back championships and are committed to becoming the first team to ever three-peat. Travis Kelce and Andy Reid have already said they're returning. There had been murmurs of a potential retirement for both individuals. Star defensive tackle and free agent Chris Jones said he's absolutely going to be back in Kansas City. They'll be returning most of their core, but they have a few spots that they will need to improve upon. However, having Patrick Mahomes gives them a huge margin of error.
Previous Divisional Editions breaking down each team's 2023 season, their offseason assets, and their top-three positional needs going into the 2024 NFL Season can be found here:
The Chiefs are in a good place financially, but they have some monster free agents coming up. While most will expect them to sign a big-time receiver this offseason, their cap space and pending free agents may not make that a reality. Jones, L'Jarius Sneed, and Creed Humphrey, three players due for a contract extension either this year or next, are expected to reset the market at their respective positions. Keeping all three won't be cheap. If you want to take advantage of all of our great premium tools, please use promo code, "BOOM" to receive a 10% discount.
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Season Review and Offseason Assets
The Chiefs went 11-6 in the regular season, but they struggled in the second half of the season. In their final 10 games, they went 5-5, losing to the Broncos and Raiders, two divisional foes who failed to make the playoffs. Due to that skid, the Chiefs ended up as the third seed, which meant for the first time in his career, Patrick Mahomes had to play a road playoff game. After beating Miami in the first round of the playoffs handily, the Chiefs had to go on the road against the Buffalo Bills (second seed) and Baltimore (top seed).
To win their second Super Bowl in a row, they had to knock off the top seed in the NFC, the San Francisco 49ers. It was a grueling playoff schedule, but with a stifling defense and Mahomes’ brilliance, they ended up hoisting the Lombardi Trophy once again. The Chiefs are, without question, a true dynasty. Andy Reid, with another five years of coaching, is going to rival Bill Belichick and when it’s all said and done, Mahomes likely leap-frogs Tom Brady, a feat he may have already accomplished, depending on what your criteria is.
The Chiefs’ offense struggled a bit this year. They finished just 15th in points scored and ninth in yards gained. A lot of that had to do with a suspect and a very young group of pass-catchers. 2023 second-round pick Rashee Rice came on like a freight train in the second half of the season, but early on, Kelce was the only pass-catcher Mahomes was able to depend on. This is still a position that needs massive reinforcements.
The Chiefs’ defense stole the show. They finished second in points allowed and yards given up. During the playoffs, the Chiefs gave up just 63 points. Just 15.75 points per game. The Dolphins, 49ers, Ravens, and Bills collectively, averaged 28.25 points per game during the regular season. They finished second, third, fourth, and sixth in scoring collectively. The defense was great all year, but they took their game to a whole other level in the playoffs.
The Chiefs have just over $27 million in cap space. They’ll cut Marquez Valdes-Scantling, increasing their available spending to $39.6 million. Safety Justin Reid has a cap hit of $14.2 million and if they were to cut him, they’d save $10.2 million. I don’t think they will, but there’s little dead cap cutting him and the savings are a decent amount. Mahomes carries a $58.6 million cap hit. They’ll certainly restructure his contract to add cap space.
Guard Joe Thuney has a cap hit of $26.9 million and tackle Jawaan Taylor has a cap hit of $24.7 million. Thuney could be extended, while Taylor could be restructured. They have plenty of moves to use to create significant cap space and they’re going to need it. Star defensive tackle Chris Jones and star cornerback L'Jarius Sneed are both free agents. Both players have every reason in the world to ask for an extension that will reset the market at both positions.
Other players whom the Chiefs could be interested in bringing back are safety Mike Edwards and linebackers Drue Tranquill and Willie Gay Jr. Center Creed Humphrey will also be entering the final year of his rookie deal and could want an extension. Like Jones and Sneed, whenever Humphrey re-signs, he’ll become the highest-paid center in the league. They have cap space and flexibility, but they have a lot of their free agents that need to be brought back. Jones, Sneed, and Humphrey could all become the highest-paid players at their positions, so they may not be able to afford to be as active in free agency as some may be predicting.
The Chiefs own the No. 32 (first-rounder), No. 64 (second-rounder), No. 95 (third-rounder), No. 133 (fourth-rounder), and No. 172 (fifth-rounder) overall picks in this year’s NFL Draft.
Biggest Needs
1. Left Tackle
Chris Jones guaranteed he’d be back in Kansas City. Most expect him to sign a contraction extension with the Chiefs. Re-signing Sneed may be more difficult, but they’ll have the franchise tag available for him. One way or another, it seems highly unlikely either player is allowed to leave Kansas City this offseason. For that reason, we’ll be moving forward with the assumption that both players will be back in 2024.
Some may be expecting wide receiver here, but with Rice, Kelce, and Mahomes, they have enough firepower to get by. However, the play of their left tackle, Donovan Smith, was atrocious this past season. Among tackles this past season, Smith allowed the 14th most quarterback hits (7), tenth-most hurries (33), 13th-most pressures (42), and the 11th-most penalties (9). Out of 58 tackles with at least 600 snaps, Smith finished with a 55.4 PFF blocking grade. That ranked 51st.
Right tackle Jawaan Taylor was just as bad across the board, worse in some cases, but given his contract, he’s uncuttable and untradeable. The Chiefs are stuck with Taylor, but Smith is a free agent. Mahomes is the most important player in the NFL and the Chiefs must ensure he’s protected. Right now, there’s a massive hole on his blind side and it’d be ideal if they didn’t have a turntable out there at left tackle next season. They did draft Wanya Morris in the third round of the 2023 draft. He’ll likely get a chance to compete here. However, given how bad Smith and Taylor were in 2023, adding a quality tackle is imperative, and having a solid insurance policy isn't the worst idea either.
2. Defensive Line
Regardless of Chris Jones’ status, they need reinforcements along the defensive line. Michael Danna, Derrick Nnadi, Charles Omenihu, and Tershawn Wharton combined for 2,046 snaps played. Danna, Nnadi, and Wharton are all free agents. Omenihu tore his ACL during the playoffs, which could leave him unavailable for most of the 2024 season. While they’ll still have Jones and George Karlaftis III, their two best defensive linemen, they’ll need to find two additional starters and rotational players to round out this position. That could include re-signing one or two of their free agents along the defensive line, but if they don’t, they’ll have work to do in free agency and the NFL Draft. Danna, Nnadi, Omenihu, and Wharton combined for 16.5 sacks, 128 tackles, 15 tackles for a loss, and 44 pressures. That is a ton of production and snaps that will need to be replaced this offseason.
3. Wide Receiver
Kansas City finished second in pass attempts and given how much they lean on Mahomes, it makes all the sense in the world to give him some more play-makers. Kelce is 34 years old and he’ll turn 35 near the beginning of the season. Rice is a budding star. After that, however, the cupboard is bare. The organization cannot afford to trust Skyy Moore and Kadarius Toney to provide anything. Given just how bad both players have been, it’s not out of the question that one or both players are released, especially Toney.
MVS will almost certainly be gone. That leaves their receiver group with Rice, Justin Watson, Moore, and Toney. That’s just about as ugly as it gets. Watson averaged 1.25 yards per route run, which is bad. Toney and Moore were somehow worse, far worse, averaging just 1.11 and 0.84 yards per route run, respectively. Linebacker is another position that deserves a mention because Willie Gay Jr. and Drue Tranquill are both free agents.
Other Positions of Need: Linebacker
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