Kansas City Chiefs

Projected Cap Space: -$10.7 million

Draft Picks: 6

• 1st (No. 9)
• 2nd (No. 40)
• 3rd (No. 74)
• 4th (No. 109)
• 5th (No. 146)
• 5th (No. 176, comp)

Notable Free Agents: 

• TE Travis Kelce
• CB Jaylen Watson
• S Bryan Cook
• LB Leo Chenal
• WR Marquise Brown
• DE Charles Omenihu
• RB Isiah Pacheco
• WR Tyquan Thornton
• QB Gardner Minshew
• G Mike Caliendo (RFA)
• WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
• S Mike Edwards
• DT Jerry Tillery
• DT Mike Pennel
• RB Kareem Hunt
• TE Robert Tonyan
• CB Joshua Williams
• RB Dameon Pierce

Top Three Needs

1 – Pass Catcher

This is a nut the Chiefs have been trying to crack for a few years now since trading WR Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins ahead of the 2022 season. Kansas City won two Super Bowls after that trade and reached a third, but the offense kept deteriorating year after year until reaching its final, awful form in 2025. It speaks to the brilliance of QB Patrick Mahomes that he was able to mask it for so long, but even Mahomes wasn’t going to be able to save the Chiefs this past season. He tore his ACL trying. 

Moving forward, the Chiefs have to take some pressure off of Mahomes by improving the supporting cast around him. Adjectives like ineffective, plodding and boring — ones that would have been unthinkable in 2021 — have become synonymous with Kansas City’s attack. They desperately need to bring the explosive play element back to the offense. 

A reunion with Hill is one option now that he’s been cut by Miami. But the veteran is rehabbing a dislocated knee and the latest word is that he won’t be ready in time to start the season. Hill might be a midseason addition to give the Chiefs a boost, but they need to make other plans without relying on him as a savior for the offense, because he probably isn’t that guy anymore.

The Chiefs need a new No. 1 target who can dictate matchups, either a wide receiver or tight end. Hill and Kelce used to be those players and the Chiefs would like to bring Kelce back for another season in 2026. It would be in a supporting role, however, assuming he doesn’t elect to retire. 

2 – Edge Rusher

Just like on offense, the Chiefs lean hard on DT Chris Jones and DC Steve Spagnuolo to be difference makers and cover for the rest of the unit to a degree. Jones remains one of the game’s elite pass rushers, while Spagnuolo is still an excellent teacher and capable of making an opponent’s day miserable on a given game with his pressure looks. But if either of them are off their game, the Chiefs are in trouble. The rest of the defensive line is built off sidekicks who have a hard time creating pressure independent of Jones or Spagnuolo. Even DE George Karlaftis, a former first-round pick who re-upped on a deal worth over $20 million a year, is more of a really solid No. 2 edge rusher, notching 14 sacks over the past two seasons. 

Spagnuolo’s blitz looks also put a lot more pressure on the secondary, and in some years the group just isn’t as ready to deal with it. The Chiefs tend to cycle defensive backs through the pipeline and keep the heavy investments at other positions. That makes it crucial for them to find more pass-rushing impact this offseason. Jones turns 32 and won’t be able to carry the load for the defense forever. Kansas City has made prominent investments here recently that haven’t worked out but they need to keep swinging. 

3 – Running Back

The Chiefs were chasing Jets RB Breece Hall for good reason at the trade deadline last year. Between Hunt and Pacheco, Kansas City might have had the slowest runners in football. The two were physical and could grind out short gains, but having to lean on them to try and manufacture a run game is a big reason the Chiefs became so stale. Hall was prized for his ability to add explosives both in the run and pass game, taking pressure off the rest of the offense. 

Hall won’t be available, but the Chiefs will have access to a few other explosive backs, whether it’s free agency or the draft. The slogan may be that running backs don’t matter, but for the Chiefs and their outlook in 2026, they kind of do. 

One Big Question

Has the league caught up to the Chiefs? 

There’s one other big question that’s been nagging at the Chiefs as they’ve declined over the past couple of years. It’s felt more and more like HC Andy Reid hasn’t quite had the answers, whether it’s been in the personnel they’ve chased or how they’ve run the offense. As more and more teams are getting under center and leaning on play-action passing to generate explosives, it’s felt like Reid has leaned even more on the shotgun and RPO-heavy style that they tore teams up with at the turn of the decade. 

Bringing back former OC Eric Bieniemy in the same position was billed as an attempt by the Chiefs to inject new ideas into the offense. Bieniemy left the team three years ago to try and get out of Reid’s shadow while pursuing head coaching opportunities. He ran an offense for the Commanders, went back to the college level and coached running backs for the Bears last year. Chicago’s system in particular might be one he brings some wrinkles over from. 

Still, this is going back to a note that worked at one point, not innovating something new. If the Chiefs keep Kelce and sign Hill at some point, that same critique could apply. All of these individuals were key contributors in 2020 and 2021, but it’s 2026. That’s a lot of time in the NFL. 

Reid has been building a case not just as a Hall of Famer but as one of the two or three best coaches all-time in NFL history. He still deserves some benefit of the doubt. But every coach loses their edge at some point, whether it’s Bill Belichick or Bill Walsh. Reid is about to turn 68 in March, and at some point he’ll lose that edge too. Kansas City just has to hope it’s not already happening.