Arrowhead Pride
Kansas City’s salary cap is in solid shape, but money can still factor heavily into roster cuts.
Three weeks before the start of training camp on July 21, the Kansas City Chiefs appear to be in great financial shape for the 2025 season. We currently estimate the team to be $11.5 million under the limit — a stark contrast to recent offseasons of operating with minimal breathing room.
That cushion also stands to grow should the Chiefs agree to an extension with franchise-tagged guard Trey Smith ahead of the July 15 deadline. Doing so would likely substantially reduce Smith’s current $23.4 million cap number.
While Kansas City could comfortably go into the season from a cap perspective, dollars and cents will likely play into some of the general manager Brett Veach’s final roster decisions. Fans and media focus heavily on the salary cap, but team decision-makers must also factor in the overall team budget.
Here are four pending decisions that may not have substantial salary cap impact but might be of bigger concern before Week 1 to those actually writing game checks.
The Chiefs rebuilt their secondary in 2022 with half of the team’s 10 draft selections devoted to defensive backs. As four members of the quintet enter the final season of their rookie contracts, their snaps are becoming more expensive.
Looking at the Chiefs roster, cornerback Joshua Williams’ scheduled (non-guaranteed) $3.4 million salary stands out as disproportionate to his role. Earlier in the offseason, we looked at a mandatory raise Williams earned due to high defensive snap counts in 2022 and 2024, while the Chiefs managed injuries to Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, respectively. Upon Watson returning for the playoffs in January, Williams did not see a postseason defensive snap.
The offseason has made his hold on his roster spot somewhat precarious after the Chiefs traded up to the 85th selection in April’s draft to select former California cornerback Nohl Williams. Also, when fellow 2022 cornerback draftee Nazeeh Johnson agreed to a reduced contract with Kansas City in March, the team guaranteed $1.2 million of his earnings. Joshua Williams has no guaranteed salary for 2025.
Williams will certainly have a chance in camp and the preseason to make his case to stay with the Chiefs, but he should currently be seen as a strong candidate to be traded or cut after the preseason. Absent a transaction note of a reduced salary, the math is unlikely to be on his side.
Veach’s selection of wideout Skyy Moore with the 54th selection of the 2022 NFL Draft has not panned out. While Moore’s $1.5 million salary for the final season of his rookie deal is hardly significant, nine currently rostered wide receivers have cheaper 2025 salaries.
Like Williams, none of Moore’s 2025 base salary is guaranteed (he would leave behind about $543,000 in dead money from a signing bonus proration and a likely earned 2025 workout bonus). Moore also faces...
