Travis Kelce is returning to the Kansas City Chiefs for the 2025 NFL season — or at least that's the way everything seems right now. Comments from Brett Veach and Andy Reid at the NFL Combine made it seem like a formality that the future Hall-of-Fame tight end won't be retiring. That, however, does come with some level of complication for the Chiefs this offseason.
Had Kelce retired, it would've ultimately resulted in a $17 million cap savings for the Chiefs. While there is still at least a possibility that money could be pushed around with the tight end, not having that money, even with a rising salary cap, makes things complicated for Veach and the Kansas City front office.
The Chiefs have a litany of pending free agents who played crucial roles for this team throughout not just this past season but, in many cases, for several years. It seems as of now that Kansas City is prioritizing star guard Trey Smith above any others. However, with Smith projected to sign a contract that could reset the market at his position, that's going to be expensive on the books quickly — and there aren't many obvious cap-saving cuts to make to help with that as well.
So when you combine Kelce's return, Smith's potential return and the financial implications of both of those moves, that means the Chiefs will have their hands forced in many ways of decision-making. Specifically, it's getting harder to see a world where these six players are back in Kansas City for the 2025 season.
6. WR DeAndre Hopkins
There just isn't a world wherein bringing back DeAndre Hopkins makes a ton of sense for the Chiefs at this point. While there was plenty of hype around the wide receiver's arrival before the trade deadline because of how injury-riddled KC was at the position, his impact wasn't nearly what some expected it to be.
In 10 games with Kansas City this past season, Hopkins reeled in just 41 ctaches for 437 yards and four touchdowns while also going on to be a relatively seldom-used option in the passing game throughout the playoffs. Having said that, even entering his mid-30s, there should still be a market for the veteran pass-catcher who could have a solid amount of interest from around the league.
For the Chiefs, if they're bringing back a receiver, my guess is that Hollywood Brown is the priority there, not to mention the impending return of Rashee Rice and the potential to address the need in the draft. At the price and with the lack of production, though, they should be happy to let Hopkins walk.
5. RB Samaje Perine
Whenever the Chiefs brought veteran running back Samaje Perine into the fold, everyone seemed to understand the idea. With Isiah Pacheco being the bell cow in the run game, Perine's body of work suggested that he'd be the passing-down back for Patrick Mahomes in the offense. When Pacheco went out due to injury early in the season, however, that plan fell apart pretty quickly as Perine was largely ineffective even in a time share.
Perine ultimately ended up with just 48 touches for 414 total yards and two touchdowns on the year. However, it speaks volumes that, when he was pushed into what should've been a bigger role, the Chiefs pivoted from that quickly to bring back Kareem Hunt. So now that Perine is set to become a free agent, there's just no evidence that Kansas City would want to bring the veteran back.
Hunt returning wouldn't be outlandish as depth behind Pacheco, nor would targeting an early Day 3 draft pick at running back. But that goes to show there simply are numerous better options that Perine to stabilize the backfield for the 2025 campaign.
4. WR Mecole Hardman
It's fully understandable why, given the issues that Kansas City had with the health of their receiving corps this past season (and looking to protect themselves from that coming into the year), they were inclined to bring Mecole Hardman back to the organization. That was especially true with Skyy Moore all but confirming himself as a draft bust. Unfortunately, the familiarity didn't translate to Hardman being a productive piece of the offense.
Not only did he get dinged up throughout the year, limiting him to just 12 games, he was a virtual non-factor overall. He was targeted just 14 times for 12 receptions and 90 yards on the season while also getting five rushes for 62 yards and his lone touchdown. He may be someone Chiefs fans recognize but he's not a player who offered Mahomes much at all as a cog in the offensive machine.
Similar to the points made with Hopkins, this Chiefs receiver room should get somewhat of an overhaul this offseason. Hardman may have speed but he hasn't been able to utilize that of late, which is more than enough to justify moving on from him once and for all this offseason.
3. DE Joshua Uche
Throughout his time with the Patriots, we saw former second-round pick Josh Uche flash some incredibly high potential. Most notably, the Michigan product put up 11.5 sacks in 2022, his third season in New England and in the NFL. So when he fell out of favor with the Pats at the end of his rookie contract, the upside for the Chiefs to acquire him seemed abundantly clear and obvious.
That turned out to be a gamble that wasn't worth Kansas City's while. You can fully justify the trade being made, but there's no argument that it worked out. Uche played in just six games for the Chiefs after the trade was made and didn't register a single sack, tackle for loss or QB hit. By the end of the year and in the postseason, he was a healthy scratch popping up routinely on the inactives list for games.
Even though the Chiefs need pass rush help going into next season, there's no world in which Uche is the right guy for that based on what he showed in his brief half-season tenure with Kansas City.
2. OT D.J. Humphries
Speaking of positions that need help, the biggest thing that the Chiefs have to accomplish this offseason outside of retaining Smith is figuring out the tackle situation. Things got so bad down the stretch that Joe Thuney popped out to left tackle. And while Jawaan Taylor is installed on the right side, they need to figure out the issues on the blindside. What they probably know, though, is that midseason addition D.J. Humphries isn't the answer there.
For one, when Humphries was on the field, he left quite a lot to be desired in terms of how effective he was. He graded out at 44.8 according to PFF ($), which would've been one of the five worst grades among tackles had he played enough snaps to qualify. On that note, though, the issue with Humphries throughout his career popped up once again as he was injured almost immediately upon arriving in Kansas City.
Whether it's trying to find room to push for someone like Alaric Jackson or using the 31st pick, the Chiefs need to find a surer thing at tackle. It's hard to believe that anyone in the building, though, believes that surer thing is bringing Humphries back to the O-line.
1. LB Nick Bolton
This is the one that might sting the most for the Chiefs. When Kansas City selected Nick Bolton in the second round of the 2021 draft, he was a much-needed presence in the middle of the defense. And in his four seasons, he's done nothing but rack up impressive stats year after year, specifically when it comes to his eye-popping tackle numbers. But now set for a big-time pay bump at the end of his rookie contract, there are multiple factors to suggest Bolton might be a tough call that the Chiefs simply have to let walk.
For one, Bolton's tackle production often mars the fact that he's not necessarily the most effective player down-to-down at linebacker. Over the past two seasons, he's graded out as just the 62nd and 44th best linebacker in the NFL. He's good in coverage but his run defense is lesser than his box score stats would have you believe. When you take that and combine it with KC making Smith the pending free agent priority, Bolton seems far less like someone the Chiefs can even afford to pay a premium to keep.
Bolton has been a key cog for Steve Spagnuolo's defense, no doubt. But with Drue Tranquil and versatile Leo Chenal, the Chiefs might have to find a way to adjust and/or replace Bolton this offseason.