Andy Reid’s Chiefs rebuild hit by brutal financial reality that could seriously impact Patrick Mahomes

The Kansas City Chiefs dynasty crumbled in 2025, and the rebuild won’t be easy.

Having competed in five of the six Super Bowls held between 2020 and 2025, the last couple of months have been alien to Andy Reid‘s roster.

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Kansas City finished the regular season with a dismal 6-11 record, missed out on the playoffs and have landed themselves a top 10 draft pick for the first time since they traded up to take Patrick Mahomes in 2017.

Their franchise quarterback is currently recovering from a torn ACL, and is not certain to be the Week 1 starter in 2026. When he does return, he could be without top target and close friend Travis Kelce, who is still weighing up retirement.

The Chiefs find themselves in uncharted territory heading into next season, and to make matters worse, they also face a $55 million offseason black hole.

KC have the least amount of cap space in the entire NFL, and are projected to head into the new year on March 12 deep in the red.

General manager Brett Veach will need to clear nearly $60m from the payroll before he can even think of signing a single player in free agency.

Luckily, though, he has a few options available to free up some cash.

Chiefs are four moves away from $70m cap relief

The first, and perhaps most obvious solution, would be to restructure Mahomes’ contract once again.

He is one of the NFL’s highest-paid signal callers, playing under a 10-year, $450m deal.

A restructure this year could free up more than $44m in cap space by converting Mahomes’ salary to guaranteed bonuses, according to OverTheCap.com.

It’s almost guaranteed that Veach will pull that lever sooner rather than later, and that the star QB will be happy to do his team a big favor.

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The Chiefs could also look to restructure the deals of Trey Smith, Creed Humphrey and George Karlaftis. Doing so would free up $12.52m, $8.86m and $7.94m respectively.

By making those moves, KC would be well beyond the $55m needed to get out of their offseason hole.

Should they wish to move close to $100m of cap relief, other decisions would need to be made.

Will the Chiefs cut players to make cap space?

Football is a brutal business, and some players might find themselves on the chopping block heading into 2026.

Last month, ESPN reporter Brian Schatz predicted that KC will cut offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor this offseason, which which would save them $20m.

“He was seventh in pass block win rate for tackles this season, but the Chiefs can’t live with his expensive contract or his predilection for earning penalties,” Schatz wrote of the star who ended the year on injured reserve.

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Defensive end Mike Danna is another candidate to cut, as that move would save nearly $9m. The Athletic noted this week that linebacker Drue Tranquill could be released for $6m in savings, and cornerback Kristian Fulton would bring back $5m.

Both players, though, have looked productive for the team.

If tough decisions are made, Kansas City could end up with plenty of money to play with in the coming months, and could be in contention to land any top free agent they need.

The Chiefs might have been on the ropes in 2025, but a few smart offseason moves could help them bounce straight back into playoff contention.

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