New England Patriots - NESN.com
The Kansas City Chiefs will almost certainly undergo major changes following Super Bowl LIX — win or lose.
KC has fallen victim to the same circumstances that many other dynasties did over the last several decades, as the price it takes to keep cornerstone players often leads to significant turnover year after year. The Chiefs won’t have to worry about Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Trent McDuffie or Chris Jones leaving this offseason, but 29 others will enter unrestricted, restricted or exclusive-rights free agency.
The Patriots should be paying attention during their final on-field scouting opportunity Sunday, as any of these six players could be useful moving forward:
Smith is among the best overall players that will take the field Sunday, and that isn’t hyperbole. The Chiefs almost certainly won’t be able to make him the highest-paid interior offensive lineman in football, which makes it extremely likely that his final game protecting Mahomes will be Super Bowl LIX.
The Patriots can afford that contract. The only question is whether they’re interested in paying an interior player with so many issues on the outside. The Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders will also come calling, however, so there will be competition for the 25-year-old.
Wharton is perhaps the most obscure name on our list, but that’s not for a lack of talent. Kansas City has made things easy on the 26-year-old by putting him in pass-rush situations alongside the likes of Jones and George Karlaftis, which led to a career season in terms of production.
New England needs talent, and this is one way of adding it for relatively cheap this offseason.
Brown is still a really good wide receiver, but his goal of recouping value on a championship contender didn’t work out due to a long stint on injured reserve. New England probably needs to add two wideouts this offseason, and there’s no doubt the 27-year-old would be a worthwhile investment.
Hopkins isn’t what he once was, but this is a player who has familiarity with the likes of Mike Vrabel, Todd Downing and Ryan Cowden — all of who could look to bring the 32-year-old to New England.
Omenihu has been underrated since the day he stepped foot into the NFL. The Chiefs missed him throughout the majority of the season, but his return has provided quite the spark down the stretch. New England could potentially look for the 27-year-old to replace Deatrich Wise Jr.
Humphries is another guy who isn’t what he used to be. Kansas City isn’t exactly keen on playing him in the Super Bowl, but the 31-year-old could be worth a free-agent flier this offseason for a team in desperate need of tackle depth.
