Mahomes and Chris Jones contract restructures give the Chiefs nearly $50 million in cap space
The Kansas City Chiefs have made some key decisions in free agency already, bringing in three new players, re-signing some others, and allowing some to leave as well. On top of that, according to ESPN Insider, Field Yates, the Chiefs have now restructured the contracts of two of their Superstars on the team.
Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes and defensive tackle Chris Jones’ contracts have been restructured to free up nearly $49.4 million in cap space. Some of this money will go into signing their newly acquired talent, offensive tackle Jaylon Moore, running back Elijah Mitchell, and cornerback Kristian Fulton.
Kansas City had signed Mahomes to a whopping $450 million extension back in 2020, and he still has another 7 years left on that contract. This is however, the second time the Chiefs are restructuring his deal as they had done something similar last season as well.
As for Jones, he became the highest-paid defensive tackle in the league last year when he signed a mammoth 5-year deal worth $158.8 million. Both Mahomes and Jones are signed with the Chiefs for years to come, and such types of contract restructures are quite common, especially with players on massive salaries.
After the end of a devastating defeat in Super Bowl LIX at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles, the main question that needed to be answered for the Chiefs was their O-line, more specifically, their left tackle position. Kansas City went out and signed former 49ers reserve tackle Jaylon Moore to a 2-year, $30 million contract as their answer to the left tackle position. Last season the Chiefs were hampered all year long with second-rate play at that position as both Wanya Morris and Kingsley Suamataia left the Chiefs wanting more.
Eventually, Kansas City went with All-Pro guard Joe Thuney at left tackle but even that move was exposed superbly by the Eagles in the Super Bowl. Whether or not Moore will be the solution, only time will tell, but not everybody is on board with this decision.
The Chiefs, nevertheless, have traded Thuney to the Bears, which was a shocking move, but having to pay Trey Smith on the O-line was a big contributing factor in that decision. Furthermore, one of the Chiefs’ bright spots on defense, safety Justin Reid has joined the Saints.
Running back Samaje Perine is reportedly signing a two-year deal with the Bengals, while underrated defensive tackle Tershawn ‘Turk’ Wharton has signed with the Panthers. On the wide receivers front, they allowed DeAndre Hopkins to walk in free agency and he has since signed with the Ravens. Similarly, Justin Watson has also left the Chiefs and has agreed terms with the Texans.
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However, two key pieces the Chiefs have re-signed are wide receiver Marquise Brown on another one-year deal worth up to $11 million, and linebacker Nick Bolton whose deal is worth $45 million for 3 years.
Overall, the Chiefs have been quite busy as they had plenty of players heading into free agency in 2025. Ideally, they would like to address a few more gaps in the roster through free agency and the draft, hence, clearing this cap space was an important step in that direction.
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