Chiefs headlines for Wednesday, February 19
The latest
$66 million cap number means the Chiefs will need to re-do Patrick Mahomes’s deal, soon | NBC Sports
As the Chiefs finish the third straight season of playing as late into the calendar as possible, they once again have limited time to take care of early-offseason business.
At the top of the stack is the future of tight end Travis Kelce, whose retirement would create both a giant hole in the starting lineup but $17.3 million in cap space.
Not far beneath Item A is the contract of Patrick Mahomes. Now that he’s getting deeper into his ultra-long-term half-billion-dollar deal, the cap numbers are going up. For 2025, it moves to $66.258 million.
They’ll need to chop it down. They surely will.
Before the 2023 season — and after Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow signed a then-record deal — the Chiefs reworked Mahomes’s contract to ensure that his cash flow exceeds all others (as of June 2024) in the four years from 2023 through 2026 and the four years from 2024 through 2027.
2025 NFL free agency: Best team fits for top 50 players | ESPN
23. Nick Bolton, LB
Best team fit: Denver Broncos
Bolton would be a big upgrade for Vance Joseph’s defense in Denver. Bolton fits with the Broncos as a downhill thumper against the run — he had 11 tackles for loss last season. In coverage, Bolton lacks elite second-level range, but he has four career interceptions.
2025 NFL franchise tag candidates: Which players could be tagged? | USA Today
Kansas City Chiefs
They have several key players on expiring deals: LB Nick Bolton, G Trey Smith and S Justin Reid. What they don’t have is cap room … or, as their failed three-peat highlighted, a serviceable left tackle or sufficient pass rush depth.
Round 1 – Pick 32
NFL Draft • 6’4” / 242 lbs
With plenty of important free agents, the Chiefs could go in plenty of directions, and Wilson would be the instant replacement to Nick Bolton if he signs elsewhere.
2025 NFL Mock Draft: QB Shedeur Sanders lands in New York, Cowboys trade for Myles Garrett | PFF
31. KANSAS CITY CHIEFS: TE COLSTON LOVELAND, MICHIGAN
After watching the Chiefs’ offense in the Super Bowl, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if the team used this pick on an offensive lineman. However, Travis Kelce is going into his 13th season, and drafting his replacement before he leaves would do wonders for maintaining Kansas City’s offensive success in the coming years. Loveland averaged a very impressive 2.67 yards per route run in 2024 to go along with his 90.6 PFF receiving grade.
Daniel Jeremiah 2025 NFL mock draft 2.0: Steelers, Chargers, Vikings pick RBs in Round 1 | NFL.com
31 – Kansas City Chiefs
Oregon · OT · Junior
The Chiefs must address the left tackle spot in free agency or the draft. In this scenario, they find a match in Conerly.
Around the NFL
Sources – Bengals aim for deals with Chase, Higgins, Hendrickson | ESPN
The team will attempt to secure a trio of stars who need new deals — wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and defensive end Trey Hendrickson — for the long term, sources told ESPN.
Whether Cincinnati can pull it off remains uncertain, but the team’s messaging behind the scenes is that it’s certainly going to try.
That starts with Higgins, who is set to hit free agency March 12. One team source says they believe the Bengals will use the franchise tag on Higgins if no long-term deal is reached by the March 4 tag deadline “in order to have time to get a deal done. Can’t let him walk.”
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Chiefs Salary Cap: How Proven Performance Escalator affects 2025
Three years ago, the Chiefs selected Chenal in the third round (103rd overall). Then on Day 3, Kansas City found Williams in the fourth round (135th overall) and Watson in the seventh (243rd overall). Players selected after the second round can qualify for a Level 1 pay raise by playing at least 35% of a team’s offensive or defensive snaps in two of their first three seasons. (For second-round draft picks — such as safety Bryan Cook — that threshold is 60%).
The $3.2 million base salary is based on the cost of an original round tender to a restricted free agent. Linebacker Nick Bolton, tight end Noah Gray and guard Trey Smith all qualified for Level 1 escalators in 2024. By being named to a Pro Bowl during his rookie contract, center Creed Humphrey qualified for a Level 3 escalator. In 2025, the base salary for that level is $5.2 million, which is the same as a second-round restricted free-agent tender. (No Kansas City players qualified for a Level 3 escalator for 2025).
Ultimately, Humphrey’s raise was rolled into his eventual position-topping extension. Gray’s contract extension was announced just as the Chiefs were preparing to face the Baltimore Ravens in the season opener.
Social media to make you think
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— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) February 17, 2025
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