5 former Chiefs who are shockingly still not signed

The Kansas City Chiefs did it again. They won their second straight Super Bowl and hoisted the Lombardi Trophy for the third time in the last five seasons. They did it against all odds, winning games against the AFC's elite on the road with Patrick Mahomes' worst supporting cast on the offensive side of the ball.

While they traded L'Jarius Sneed the Chiefs have still had a productive offseason bringing several key defensive players back including Chris Jones, and also improving their wide receiver room with the additions of Marquise Brown and Xavier Worthy.

Kansas City wasn't going to be able to bring back all of their free agents, but it was assumed that players who were on last season's roster would be snatched up early on in free agency. That has not been the case. These five former Chiefs are somehow still available for teams to sign.

5. Blake Bell, TE

The Kansas City Chiefs have one of, if not the best tight end to ever live in Travis Kelce still kicking. No, Kelce isn't quite as dynamic as he once was, but he's still easily Kansas City's best weapon and we saw in the postseason that he can elevate his game when it matters most.

Kelce might be 34 years old but he's still Kansas City's TE1 and if he can stay healthy, he'll get more targets than anyone. Their backup, Noah Gray, set career highs in receiving yards (305) and touchdowns (2) last season and is just 25 years old. It remains to be seen if he can be Kelce's replacement, but he's proven to be a solid backup.

The Chiefs signed Irv Smith Jr. this past offseason to add even more depth to what is already a stout tight end room.

The Chiefs having a strong tight end room before Blake Bell's name is even mentioned is exactly why Bell is a free agent. Bell spent each of his last three seasons in Kansas City and while he never caught many passes, he was used mostly in a blocking role. He won't catch many passes but he's a ten-year veteran who has been in just about any situation. He'd be a solid depth tight end for any team to sign.

4. Jerick McKinnon, RB

Jerick McKinnon spent three seasons with the Chiefs serving one particular role. He was a running back used as a pass catcher. He was never better in that area than he was in 2022 when he recorded nine touchdowns and 512 receiving yards.

Unfortunately, McKinnon's play took a big step back in 2023. He had just 21 rushing attempts for 60 yards on the ground, and 25 receptions for 192 yards, and four touchdowns in the air. He went from playing 47% of the snaps in 2022 to just 32% this past season. He had just two receptions in the postseason, both of which came in the Super Bowl.

The writing was on the wall for McKinnon in Kansas City as Isiah Pacheco has taken complete control over that backfield, but you'd think a team out there would want to use him in a smaller receiving role for cheap. Perhaps that will happen at some point over the offseason.

3. Blaine Gabbert, QB

Blaine Gabbert hasn't had the career that fans would hope a No. 10 overall pick would have, but he's been a fine backup throughout his 12 seasons. He's played for six different teams and has won Super Bowls with each of the last two he's been on, winning it with the Chiefs last season and with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020.

As a backup, Gabbert doesn't play much, but he did appear in two games and started last season's regular season finale against the Los Angeles Chargers. Gabbert wasn't extraordinary that game, completing just 18 of his 36 passes for 154 yards and no passing touchdowns, but he did find a way to lead his team to a 13-12 victory.

Gabbert wouldn't sign anywhere to start, but you'd think a veteran who has been in any system you can think of and has played behind two of the greatest quarterbacks who have ever lived, Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady, would find a job. Gabbert at the very least could be a mentor of sorts for a younger quarterback out there.

2. Mecole Hardman, WR

Mecole Hardman's career looked just about done after he was a non-factor with the New York Jets. In the five games he appeared in with the Jets he had a total of three targets and one reception for six yards. He was eventually traded by New York back to Kansas City where he spent each of the first four seasons of his career and he wound up turning his season around.

The numbers were underwhelming as he had just 14 receptions for 118 yards in six games, but he had three receptions for 57 yards in the Super Bowl including a touchdown in the second half of Kansas City's victory.

Hardman might not be the burner he once was, but he has three Super Bowl rings and could add much-needed depth to several wide receiver rooms. He'd come cheap and as he showed last season, he might just have some more big plays in him.

1. Donovan Smith, OT

After he spent each of his first eight seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Chiefs gave Donovan Smith a one-year deal to be their starting left tackle. The oft-penalized Smith got dinged nine times last season. Granted, it wasn't as many as the 12 he had the season prior, but it was still a ton, and he proved to be a weak link on the offensive line.

Smith is a low-end starter at best at this point in his career so it'd be understandable for teams not to want to sign him as a starter, especially considering the fact that he's 31 years old, but what about as a backup at the very least?

This is a player who started 12 regular season games and four playoff games for the Super Bowl champions last season, and he also was a starter for the Bucs when they won. He can at least add value in a depth capacity and would be one of the better backups in the league.