The Kansas City Chiefs' dream of winning three consecutive Super Bowls was derailed by the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 59, losing 40-22 in a lopsided contest. The biggest culprit in their loss was the offensive line's inability to handle the Eagles' pass rush throughout the game as quarterback Patrick Mahomes never got into rhythm and made uncharacteristic errors.
The loss was similar to their Super Bowl 55 defeat against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Chiefs totally remade their offensive line that offseason in response, when they signed guard Joe Thuney and drafted center Creed Humphrey. The Chiefs are faced with a similar dilemma again entering this offseason. They must fix their offensive line while their guard Trey Smith becomes a free agent and is expected to command serious interest around the league.
The Chiefs are currently ranked in the bottom ten in available salary cap space as of this writing. But on Wednesday, the NFL offered a lifeline to teams like the Chiefs by announcing the increase in salary cap for the upcoming 2025 season. The new salary cap numbers are expected to be from $277.5 million to $281.5 million per club, a sharp increase from $255.4 million in 2024.
The odds Chiefs keep Trey Smith long-term went up with a help from salary cap
This comes after reports of the Chiefs deciding not to use neither franchise or transition tag on Smith. The timing of the NFL announcing the salary cap increase on the very same day could not come at a better time for the Chiefs. That means they are unlikely to retain other free agents such as LB Nick Bolton, DE Tershawn Wharton, S Justin Reid, and WR Marquise Brown just to name a few.
They also have time to restructure contracts of Patrick Mahomes, fellow offensive lineman Juwaan Taylor and Thuney, and Travis Kelce if he decides to return next season if he decides to return for another season.
No one can fault Smith if he leaves and signs with a team like Chicago, where ESPN's Jeremy Fowler has already connected him there (Paid subscription required) and become the highest-paid guard in the NFL, surpassing Philadelphia's Landon Dickerson, who makes $21 million annually.
But thanks to the lifeline from the NFL, Smith's odds of returning to Kansas City went up significantly, knowing they will remain a strong Super Bowl contender as long as Patrick Mahomes is healthy while earning more than Dickerson even only by few million dollars.
For a player like Smith, a former sixth-round pick in 2021, life is going to be good no matter what he decides to do this offseason.