Projected Cap Space: $4.4 million
Draft Picks: 6
Notable Free Agents:
1 – Offensive Line
The common thread in the Chiefs’ two Super Bowl losses was running into an opponent with the talent up front to dominate Kansas City’s offensive line and send QB Patrick Mahomes running for his life. After the first loss to the Buccaneers, the Chiefs completely overhauled the offensive line the following offseason, saying goodbye to both starting tackles Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz who had a combined 183 starts, two Pro Bowls and four All Pro selections between them as Chiefs.
As replacements, the Chiefs landed G Joe Thuney on a big free-agent contract, traded for OT Orlando Brown Jr. in a package involving their first-round pick and drafted C Creed Humphrey in the second round and Smith in the sixth. It’s probably the most impressive one-year offensive line renovation in recent memory. They might end up needing to do a similar overhaul.
Smith is set to be a free agent and with the way the guard market has exploded should be in position to sign for north of $20 million per season. It’s fair to question whether the Chiefs will be willing to go that high for a guard, which isn’t traditionally seen as a premium position. Thuney is also entering the final year of his contract in 2025 and turns 33 in November. One way or another, it does not seem like both players are destined to be long-term fits in Kansas City.
Humphrey is locked up for years to come at center but out at tackle the Chiefs once again have major questions. They let Brown walk in free agency two years ago and instead pivoted to signing RT Jawaan Taylor to a massive, $20 million per year deal. Taylor’s unfortunately become more known for false starts and alignment penalties than his play on the field and there’s been some speculation the Chiefs could look to move on. However, his full $20 million compensation in 2025 is already guaranteed, so Kansas City might be stuck with him.
The Chiefs could be more content with that than fans and analysts. Though the NFL media space has come a long way with evaluating offensive linemen, there’s still not the same depth as with other positions. For instance, PFF is quite low on Taylor, putting him in the bottom...