3 Chiefs that probably won’t return to Kansas City in 2022

The Chiefs may not have the money to bring back these three stars next season, for better or worse.

The Chiefs are entering a time in their franchise where the quarterback will be taking a major bulk of the cap space. Patrick Mahomes will be entering the first year of his 10-year contract in 2022, making a little over $35 million. Because of this, the Chiefs will have to cut players that either take up a lot of cap space and/or have underperformed in recent seasons.

Frank Clark is the first name that comes to mind when it comes to this topic. The Chiefs signed Clark in 2019 to a five-year, $104 million deal with the expectation he’d be a double-digit sack producer and consistent pass-rush threat. The 28-year-old has been extremely underwhelming with only 3.5 sacks in 2021. That type of production is not what you expect with such a high price tag.

Based on production alone, releasing Clark should be an easy move for the Chiefs this offseason. By cutting Clark, the Chiefs would save $12.7 million in cap space.