It's easy to overreact to one game in the NFL. Especially when that game is the Super Bowl. After the Kansas City Chiefs were blown out of New Orleans by a score of 40-22 against the Philadelphia Eagles, fans and analysts everywhere rushed to talk about what was "wrong" with the former back-to-back champs.
The more measured reaction is that this is a one-game sample size. The Eagles had an excellent game plan and a few early turnovers were enough to rattle the Chiefs. It would be just as easy for the Chiefs to rest on their laurels, chalk this up to bad luck, and go into 2025 mostly as-is.
But the Chiefs cannot afford to do that. The loss to the Eagles was the culmination of good fortune running out, and roster deficiencies finally catching up to them. They also have several key players from their three Super Bowl appearances entering free agency. Being right up against the cap for 2025 before the offseason begins will force them into making some tough choices.
On top of what happens with the roster coming off of a Super Bowl loss, how do the Chiefs combat the Super Bowl "hangover" as the team that loses the big game? With the emotional fatigue of losing finally pairing with the physical fatigue of making it to the final game for the third season in a row?
Kansas City is going to need some major moves this offseason to combat all forms of fatigue. But what are those moves? And what needs to happen first?
1. Restructure Patrick Mahomes and Chris Jones
Over The Cap has the Kansas City Chiefs over the salary cap by about $2 million when it comes to "effective cap", which takes into account an estimated rookie class, and the Rule of 51.
The quickest and easiest way for the Chiefs to create the cap space they'll need is to restructure the contracts of Patrick Mahomes and Chris Jones. Doing this frees up about $60 million for the 2025 season.
It isn't ideal to restructure big contracts every season. Especially for two players in their 30s. But we know Mahomes isn't going anywhere, and it's impossible to build a roster with one player having a cap hit of over $60 million, which is what Mahomes is set to have before a restructure.
In the case of Jones, restructuring him falls more in line with the "emergency" tag. He turns 31 this summer and is coming off of a "down" year in production with just five sacks after back-to-back double-digit sack seasons. But Jones was a First Team All-Pro yet again and with three more years on his deal this restructure is viable.
A minor offseason move to combat fatigue that will happen as a result of this is re-signing their own key players. Over the years teams have talked about what it meant to lose key players in free agency after losing in the playoffs. However, it feels like it shuts a window by missing out on those players coming back. Trey Smith, Nick Bolton, Justin Reid, and more are players the Chiefs should want to bring back in 2025. And these restructures can help do that.
2. Fix the fatal flaws
After these restructures are done, Kansas City needs to hit the drawing board on fixing their fatal flaw on the roster: left tackle.
After several failed draft picks the Chiefs need to go back to the veteran free agent well. Orlando Brown and Donovan Smith weren't All-Pros or even top 10 guys at the position when they were in the red and yellow, but they both played above the line necessary when you have Patrick Mahomes at quarterback.
The young guys drafted over the years — Lucas Niang, Wanya Morris, Kingsley Suamataia - have not been above that line. And adding another young player onto that pile cannot be their one move.
Ronnie Stanley, Dan Moore Jr, and Cam Robinson are all players the Chiefs should consider signing. Stanley might be the only player to garner $20 million per season and any Pro Bowl consideration, but all three could be viable starters in 2025. Back that up with another draft pick and more development for Morris and Suamataia and they should be in better shape at tackle in 2025.
3. Make a splash in free agency
I love offensive line play — but even I can't get too excited about a Ronnie Stanley signing in 2025. So what the Chiefs need next is a free agent to make an impact on the field and in the media. Something fresh to give everyone a jolt of energy.
Stefon Diggs, Amari Cooper, Cooper Kupp, Najee Harris, Javonte Williams. These are all players who could make an impact on the field by replacing either Kareem Hunt or DeAndre Hopkins, as well as be splashy enough moves we spend all summer talking about it.
I can hear the training camp tidbits about Harris's youthful energy, or Kupp's insane work ethic lighting a fire under the Chief's veterans. Then in-season, with things hopefully going well, the story can be about this new piece of the offense. How they're gelling, what it's like for them to be on the team, as opposed to asking the same players, the same questions, about getting back to the big game in February.
4. Insulate your veterans
Both from a literal snap count and game plan perspective — Kansas City needs to keep its veterans "fresh" for 2025. So that means not only do they need to add to the weak points of their roster — but even their strengths.
On the defensive line, Chris Jones has played over 80 percent of the snaps in two of the last three seasons. He only played above 70 percent once in his six years before that. Adding more useful players on the defensive line to rotate with Jones — through the draft or free agency — is a must.
Travis Kelce led all RBs/WRs/TEs on the team with 940 snaps. Nearly 200 more than the next-highest player and 165 more than he had last year. Kelce had another good postseason, but obviously a tough game in the Super Bowl. And in those regular season games, he wasn't nearly as impactful as in years past. A splashy pass-catcher and the return of Rashee Rice should help, but another veteran tight end could also be beneficial.
And finally Mahomes. How can you insulate the quarterback? By insulating everything else. By improving the offensive line, both starters and depth, and adding to the pass catchers you can give Mahomes more chances and less to do in the pass game. Re-tooling the offensive line might also improve the running game which would surely take even more off of Mahomes's plate.
Taking care of these three players and making their week-to-week "easier" would go a long way in keeping the whole team afloat through 2025.
5. Prop up young players
And finally, there's the young guys on the roster. The 2025 Chiefs will try to be like the 2021-2022 Golden State Warriors of the NBA. That was the team that won their fourth title of the era four years after their previous championship.
That year Golden State was propped up through the regular season by their younger players. Seven players played more games than Steph Curry, and six of them were between the ages of 19-29. Draymond Green and Klay Thompson played in just 78 combined games that regular season.
The Chiefs will need young players to carry them in 2025 as well. Rice, Xavier Worthy, and Noah Gray should carry a large load in the pass game. Isiah Pacheco should have a bounce-back year if he's healthy. Smith and Creed Humphrey need another big season on the line. Bolton, Leo Chenal, George Karlaftis and even Felix Anudike-Uzomah need big years on defense - along with the young secondary.
These are the names — along with Mahomes — that need to be talked about most during the season. The in-house players who are young. A splashy move or two in free agency is nice, and maybe they'll get lucky with one draft pick — but there are at least 10 players age 27 or younger that Kansas City needs to be able to count on.
The more on-field and off-field attention the Chiefs can shift from their stars to new faces — both currently on the roster and off of it — the better for the Chiefs when it comes to avoiding fatigue in 2025.