One month removed from Super Bowl championship, Kansas City Chiefs confront free agency
With the recent release of defensive end Frank Clark and a decision to not use the franchise tag on left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., the Chiefs have officially reached the business-side-of-football phase of their offseason.
The league’s new calendar year begins at 3 p.m. Central Time on Wednesday, and there are more decisions looming for Chiefs general manager Brett Veach.
But given Veach’s track record of building Super Bowl-winning teams, the Chiefs will be well-prepared as free agency begins.
“I think you’ve just got to be buttoned up on your free-agency plan,” Veach said during the recent NFL Scouting Combine. “I don’t think you can go in there and have a set of A, B, C, D.
“You have to just have a plan, stick to it, and knock it out of the park. And if the plan doesn’t work, you have to move on quickly.”
The Chiefs can officially start the process at 11 a.m. Monday. That’s the beginning of a two-day open-negotiation period with the agents representing pending unrestricted free agents. Teams and agents can agree to contract terms in that two-day span, but deals struck during this 48-hour window won’t become official until Wednesday.
Strategy will come into play quickly on Monday and Tuesday; Veach’s approach to free agency in recent seasons has been to abstain from the free-for-all early spending frenzy that typically engulfs the league.
Last year the Chiefs’ splashiest signing early in free agency was adding safety Justin Reid on a three-year contract. They then signed wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster to a one-year deal before pulling off the blockbuster trade that sent wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for draft picks.
Hill’s trade freed up salary-cap space, which the Chiefs used to sign receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to a three-year contract. The trade also enabled them to fill in other areas of need by signing safety Deon Bush and bringing back defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi on one-year deals.
So what’s to come next week?
The Chiefs will certainly look to add to their championship roster, but Veach has proven that he and his staff will be selective about which veteran free agents they sign. Needs that go unmet during free agency could well be addressed during next month’s NFL Draft right here in Kansas City.
CAP SPACE
Reports in late January indicated the 2023 salary cap will be set at $224.8 million when the NFL’s new calendar year begins. While that number won’t become official until March 15, two well-known sites that monitor the NFL’s salary cap have adjusted all 32 NFL teams’ spending power based on those reports.
The Chiefs increased their spending power after cutting ties with Clark, who was set to count more than $28 million against the cap in 2023. Spotrac now projects the Chiefs will have $17.8 million in available cap space, while Over the Cap estimates the figure will be more like $16.9 million.
The Chiefs have the cash to be active in free agency, if they choose, and could gain still more cap space by restructuring a contract or two.
UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
The following players have four or more years of accrued service in the league with an expired contract:
- QB Chad Henne (announced retirement)
- RB Jerick McKinnon
- RB Ronald Jones
- FB Michael Burton
- LT Orlando Brown Jr.
- RT Andrew Wylie
- G/C Nick Allegretti
- WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
- WR Mecole Hardman
- WR Justin Watson
- TE Blake Bell
- DE Frank Clark (released)
- DE Carlos Dunlap
- DT Derrick Nnadi
- DT Khalen Saunders
- S Juan Thornhill
- S Deon Bush
The above list includes multiple players who had key roles in KC’s championship run this past season, but the Chiefs won’t be able to keep everyone.
The biggest concern arguably falls on both starting tackle positions. Should Brown and Wylie sign elsewhere, the Chiefs’ internal options appear limited.
At right tackle, Lucas Niang, who started nine games at that position in 2021, is a likely replacement for Wylie, who recently expressed a desire for a multiyear deal. But left tackle would need to be addressed through free agency or the draft.
The Chiefs could try to bring back Smith-Schuster and McKinnon, both of whom told The Star during Super Bowl week that they wanted to stay in Kansas City.
Thornhill, a four-year starter, also told The Star in the week leading up to the Super Bowl that he would like to stay in KC. But he should have a fair share of suitors during free agency, which might price him out of a return here.
And bringing back Burton, who was the lone fullback on the Chiefs’ active 53-player roster the past two seasons, makes sense.
RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
The following players have three years of accrued service in the league with an expired contract:
- P Tommy Townsend
- DL Tershawn Wharton
- LB Darius Harris
The Chiefs have an option to apply qualifying offers, such as a right of first refusal or draft pick tenders, on their restricted free agents. If the Chiefs do not extend a qualifying tender to a restricted free agent, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent.
Restricted free agents are allowed to negotiate with other teams and sign an offer sheet elsewhere. Should the Chiefs decide to not to match the offer, the other team would owe compensation to the Chiefs, depending on the applied tender. For example, if the Chiefs applied a first-round tender on a restricted free agent and elected to not match an offer from another team, the team signing the player would owe the Chiefs a first-round pick.
It wouldn’t be too surprising if the Chiefs protected their investment in Townsend, who garnered first-team All-Pro honors in 2022, with a high-draft tender offer.
EXCLUSIVE-RIGHTS FREE AGENTS
The following players have less than three years of accrued service in the league with an expired contract:
- QB Shane Buechele
- TE Jody Fortson
- T Prince Tega Wanogho
These players can’t negotiate with other teams if they receive a qualifying one-year tender offer from the Chiefs. The player has a choice to sign the offer sheet or sit out a season.
If the Chiefs do not extend a qualifying offer to an exclusive-rights free agent, the player is free to sign with another team. This situation occurred in 2022 with cornerback Chris Lammons, who eventually rejoined the Chiefs before training camp.
This story was originally published March 10, 2023 at 5:30 AM with the headline "One month removed from Super Bowl championship, Kansas City Chiefs confront free agency."
