Tyrann Mathieu’s camp, KC Chiefs hope to break bread in Indy. New contract for dessert?
Safety Tyrann Mathieu, who is eligible for unrestricted NFL free agency in two weeks, wants to stay in Kansas City ... and the Chiefs want that, too.
That much has seemed clear since last offseason and throughout the Chiefs’ 2021 campaign. But the looming start of the NFL’s new year, set for March 16, is heightening the urgency surrounding the Mathieu’s contract situation.
Right now, he doesn’t have one. Mathieu’s previous contract has expired.
But the Chiefs’ decision-making team, including general manager Brett Veach, appears to be in the right place at the right time to finally make something happen during this week’s NFL Scouting Combine.
“We’ll have a chance to, obviously on one hand, see all the great college prospects, but on the other hand, have an opportunity to talk with our players’ agents and exchange information,” Veach said Tuesday in Indianapolis. “So we’ll start that process this week and hopefully everything ends in a positive direction.”
The Chiefs and the league’s 31 other franchises don’t yet know for sure what the NFL’s salary cap will be for the 2022 season, but it is projected to increase to $208.2 million per team. And the salary cap last year played a role in not getting a long-term deal done with Mathieu, who earned a base salary of $14.5 million in 2021.
By all accounts, Mathieu, who turns 30 on May 13, has done his part to earn another contract in Kansas City.
Since signing a three-year, $42 million free-agent deal with KC in 2019, Mathieu has become the heart and soul of the Chiefs’ defense. Over the past three seasons, he has appeared in 47 games, all starts, and totaled 213 tackles, 13 interceptions, 27 passes defensed, three sacks and six quarterback hits. He has also scored two defensive touchdowns.
His performances led to two first-team All-Pro selections (2019-20) and two straight Pro Bowl selections (2020-21).
Veach said he and his staff will make it a point to coordinate a sit-down dinner in Indianapolis with Mathieu’s representatives. The aim is to keep lines of communication open as the time to strike a new deal grows precariously short.
As they dine, the Chiefs are likely to emphasize what they told Mathieu and his representatives shortly after the AFC Championship Game.
“We had a chance to talk,” Veach said. “We communicated that we certainly love Tyrann and Tyrann loves being here.
“This is actually the start of that process now.”
This story was originally published March 1, 2022 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Tyrann Mathieu’s camp, KC Chiefs hope to break bread in Indy. New contract for dessert?."
