Chiefs headlines for Tuesday, February 18
The latest
Eight biggest Super Bowl windows right now: Chiefs rank third; Packers crack top five | NFL.com
2024 record: 15-2
Do not let Kansas City’s disappointing performance in Super Bowl LIX overshadow the team’s dominance over the past six seasons. The Chiefs have appeared in five Super Bowls in that span, winning three Lombardi Trophies while transforming from a high-flying, aerial circus to a throwback squad that plays complementary football.
Given Kansas City’s evolution and impressive résumé (nine straight AFC West titles, seven straight AFC Championship Game appearances), the Chiefs must be considered top-tier title contenders with Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes back to avenge a humiliating defeat on football’s biggest stage. Though the team must address the offensive line, upgrade the backfield and possibly replace Travis Kelce, No. 15’s presence ensures the offense will find a way to score enough points to win with or without elite firepower.
Defensively, the Chiefs will return a pair of elite players (DT Chris Jones and CB Trent McDuffie) and a host of key contributors (including DE George Karlaftis and LBs Leo Chenal, and Drue Tranquill), but the team must make hard decisions on whether to bring back Nick Bolton and Justin Reid on hefty contracts. Whoever’s on board, Kansas City’s D will apply plenty of heat on the opposition, with blitzing guru Steve Spagnuolo at the controls.
While GM Brett Veach and Reid have navigated these roads before, the path to Super Bowl LX will be challenging with a retooled roster on the horizon.
2025 NFL offseason: 17 WRs available in free agency or trades | ESPN
2024 stats: 9 catches, 91 yards (2 games with KC)
2024 salary: $7 million
Age entering 2025 season: 28
Signed to a one-year deal last offseason, Brown’s debut in Kansas City was waylaid by a shoulder injury suffered before the regular season. When he returned late in the season, he seemed to be a focal point of the offense with designed touches on a limited snap count, as he was targeted on a whopping 45% of his routes in a pair of Chiefs victories.
Brown’s role diminished in the postseason, however. His target rate dropped to 20%, and he turned his 65 routes into just 50 receiving yards. The hope was that he might be a downfield threat for the Chiefs, but he failed to catch any of the five deep targets thrown in his direction, including a back-shoulder possibility in which he stepped out of bounds and a deep ball that hit him in the hands.
2025 NFL franchise tag candidates: Will Sam Darnold get it? | ESPN
The Chiefs have a lengthy list of free agents they would prefer to retain, but a shortage of cap space makes it unlikely they would place the franchise tag on any of their players. The Chiefs don’t relish the idea of losing guard Trey Smith, but putting a franchise tag on him at a projected cost of $25 million would wipe out their plans to re-sign others among their potential free agents. The Chiefs have much already invested in offensive linemen Creed Humphrey, Jawaan Taylor and Joe Thuney, another reason tagging Smith doesn’t make a lot of sense. — Adam Teicher
Kansas City Chiefs: Skyy Moore, WR
The Chiefs don’t have an ideal candidate for this category. This offseason will likely be similar to the past two years for the Chiefs. They can create plenty of salary-cap space by converting a large chunk of Mahomes’ $32.3 million roster bonus into a signing bonus. Another way to create a small amount of space is by releasing Moore, the 2022 second-round pick. Moore has struggled in the past three years and hasn’t done enough to have a defined role in the offense. The Chiefs would save $1.6 million by releasing him, according to Over The Cap, with just $467,819 in dead money. — Nate Taylor
Eagles’ Lane Johnson Called Out Chiefs’ Parade Shirts in Speech Before Super Bowl | SI
Veteran offensive tackle Lane Johnson had a powerful message for his guys as he told them to remember the celebratory shirts some of the Chiefs wore to their championship parade after they beat the Eagles in the Super Bowl two years ago.
First, here’s a look at the shirts, which boasted about how they didn’t give up a sack to the Eagles in their win:
The #Chiefs starting offensive line of Orlando Brown, Joe Thuney, Creed Humphrey, Trey Smith and Andrew Wylie held Philadelphia to zero sacks in the Super Bowl.
They dressed accordingly today for the Super Bowl parade. pic.twitter.com/0FxrD0xmMX
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) February 15, 2023
Around the NFL
Aaron Rodgers’ future: QB pleaded with Jets to keep him for 2025 season, per report | CBS Sports
When the Jets’ brass met with Aaron Rodgers, the future Hall of Fame quarterback apparently made an unsuccessful pitch to remain with the team.
Rodgers reportedly pleaded with the Jets to keep him, according to the New York Post. The report said that Rodgers aggressively urged New York to keep him for one or two more years. Once a decision was made, though, Rodgers reportedly accepted it and “slipped into the darkness for a few days.”
Rodgers’ reported actions during the meeting aren’t surprising, as Rodgers has said several times that he enjoyed his time with the Jets and wanted to continue his career there. It’s also not a big surprise that the Jets’ new brass decided to go in a different direction.
During their introductory press conference, Jets head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Aaron Mougey were non-committal about Rodgers’ future with the team. Glenn specifically made it clear that questions about Rodgers wouldn’t dominate the press conference, a stance that offered insight into Glenn’s team-first coaching philosophy.
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Chiefs Roster: How to fix their left tackle problems in 2025
D.J. Humphries
The former Arizona Cardinals tackle is the most popular in-house option. The argument for Humphries is that we never got a good look at him in 2024. The Chiefs signed him in late November — right after he was medically cleared from 2023’s ACL injury. But in his first game with Kansas City, Humphries injured his hamstring. While he eventually returned to the field, he never started again.
Pros: A former Pro Bowl player, Humphries is a natural left tackle. The Chiefs should be able to re-sign him at a reasonable price tag. ACLs usually take over a year to completely heal, so there is a chance he will come back stronger in 2025.
Cons: He is now a free agent, so Kansas City will have to compete with other teams for Humphries’ services. He is also 31 years old — and knee injuries affect big men differently than smaller guys. It’s hard to predict how his body will react and heal as he ages.
Social media to make you think
Chris Jones’ grandmother, Flora Evans, saw his talent before he even knew he had it ❤️
Don’t miss the first episode of Heart of the Kingdom! pic.twitter.com/c4ZmTmgZv9
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) February 15, 2025
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