The Kansas City Chiefs have checked off the two most important pieces of business from the offseason checklist. First, they locked up franchise quarterback Patrick Mahomes on a long-term deal. Next, they extended franchise-tagged defensive tackle, Chris Jones. What’s next on the agenda in Kansas City, though?
In the NFL there’s always work and planning to be done for the future. Even with the two big contracts out of the way, the Chiefs still have some important contracts to prepare for. Some of those contracts are coming soon, others are on the horizon, and there are also some in the distant future they’ll need to address. Here’s a look at which players could be next to sign a new deal with the Kansas City:
Coming soon:
2020 rookie draft class
As early as this weekend, the Chiefs could begin to sign members from their 2020 rookie draft class. They’ve yet to sign any of the six players from the draft class. This is in part due to the big contracts they just handed out, but it’s mainly because none of the players have been in the building due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Rookies are scheduled to report to training camp this weekend for the Chiefs, but as we recently learned, teams haven’t been cleared to give players the go-ahead to return. It looks like a delay is inevitable and that could potentially hold things up when it comes to getting the rookies under contract. Nonetheless, with the season and preseason rapidly approaching, these players should be under contract sooner than later.
On the horizon:
Travis Kelce
A contract for Kelce is probably somewhere between coming soon and on the horizon for Kansas City. The team will want to monitor contract negotiations between the San Francisco 49ers and star tight end, George Kittle. He’s poised to reset the tight end market with an upcoming contract extension. It’d be wise for the Chiefs to extend Kelce ahead of time, if possible. That could potentially save them a few bucks in the long run.
Tyrann Mathieu
Mathieu is only signed through the 2021 season. He’s become a leader on and off the football field for this team. There should be mutual interest in getting a deal done that keeps him in Kansas City for a long time.
Mitchell Schwartz & Eric Fisher
This is probably an either-or conversation for the Chiefs. Both players become unrestricted free agents in 2021. Losing both bookend tackles doesn’t seem like a good option when you just forked out a ton of money to your star quarterback. It appears Kansas City has prepared for one of their departures by adding TCU OT Lucas Niang in the 2020 NFL draft, but which one will it be? Stay tuned on this one.
Derrick Nnadi
When it comes time to pay the best player from the 2018 draft class, the Chiefs will have a decision to make. Do they keep Nnadi around and can they do so inexpensively? What will his market look like after a few more good seasons? These are questions the team will have to weigh as they move forward.
Distant future:
Tyreek Hill
Hill’s contract expires following the 2022 NFL season. While they’re probably not sweating this one right now, it’s something the team will need to budget for. This one will be interesting to monitor because Hill will still be under 30 years old, there will also be another receiver contract due up that season.
2019 draft class
The one thing that stinks about having a great draft class is when it comes time to pay them. Mecole Hardman, Juan Thornhill and Khalen Saunders will all be unrestricted free agents in 2023. Since the Chiefs didn’t use a first-round pick on any of them, they won’t have a fifth-year option to use. Will the team be able to keep all three of them? Expect Hardman or Thornhill to possibly get the franchise tag when the time comes.
