The Kansas City Chiefs knew heading into the offseason they had their work cut out in navigating the salary cap.
Kansas City was an estimated $50 million over the cap when its season ended with 23 players ser to hit free agency.
Priority No. 1 for the Chiefs was to start shedding contracts and clearing cap space to start adding to their 2026 roster — and the first of those moves came on Wednesday when the team cleared a significant chunk of salary thanks to quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
“The Kansas City Chiefs converted $54.45 million of QB Patrick Mahomes’ 2026 salary into a signing bonus to create some much needed cap room for the Chiefs,” Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap wrote.
“The move lowered Mahomes’ salary cap number from $78.2 to $34.65 million for 2026, opening up $43.56 million in cap room for the Chiefs. This will be the fourth straight year that the Chiefs have restructured Mahomes’ contract to improve their salary cap situation.”
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Because of Wednesday’s move, Mahomes’ cap hit will increase by $10.89 million per year each of the next four years. His 2027 cap number is now an astronomical $85 million, meaning the team will likely have to address his contract again in the next year or two. An extension is the likeliest scenario.
Mahomes is in Year 5 of a 10-year, $450 million contract signed back in 2020, though the deal didn’t start until 2022. His current contract just may be the biggest bargain in the NFL considering there’s now 13 other QBs who make more than Mahomes does on a per-year basis.
Mahomes’ contract has a potential out after the 2027 season with a $57.16 million dead-cap penalty, which would essentially turn his contract into an eight-year, $327.9 million deal.
Even after altering Mahomes’ cap hit, the Chiefs are still $11 million over the cap and still have more moves to make.
Restructuring defensive tackle Chris Jones’s deal would free up $22.53 million, per Over the Cap. They could also gain $12.52 million by restructuring guard Trey Smith’s deal, $8.85 million by restructuring center Creed Humphrey’s contract, and another $7.94 million by restructuring defensive end George Karlaftis’ contract.
It’s also been speculated the Chiefs will designate offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor as a pre-June 1 cut, freeing up another $20 million.
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