The Kansas City Chiefs made a major move on Thursday, taking one of the highly-coveted free agents off the market.
According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Chiefs plan to use the franchise tag on star guard Trey Smith. The 25-year-old Smith will be signed to a fully-guaranteed one-year, $23.5 million contract.
The #Chiefs are planning to franchise tag star guard Trey Smith, sources say. An intriguing move, as KC keeps one of its best players for $23.4M on a 1-year, fully guaranteed deal. pic.twitter.com/IOnctKg7WE
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 27, 2025
With Smith getting the franchise tag, Kansas City has time to try and ink the former sixth-round pick to a long-term deal. However, the Chiefs must find a way to fit Smith’s franchise tag into their 2025 financial plans.
Heading into free agency, Kansas City is only projected to have $7.9 million in cap space, which isn’t enough room to sign players on the open market. Therefore, the Chiefs will have to rework some contracts to create room for Smith and other guys on the team they might want to bring back.
Speaking of other guys on the team, with Smith’s return, the Chiefs might have to say goodbye to a few players who have played well over the last few years.
The Chiefs might have their replacements on the roster. And if they don’t, Kansas City might have to use the draft to fill in the necessary holes. Below, we’ll highlight three players that might be out of Kansas City this offseason.
1. Justin Reid, Safety
The veteran safety might’ve played his last down with the Chiefs in Super Bowl 59. Reid has done a good job solidifying the backend of the Chiefs’ defense the past three years.
The 28-year-old free safety doesn’t get talked about as one of the better DBs in the league, but he’s one of Kansas City’s best defenders, which is all that counts. This past season, Reid had 87 combined tackles, nine pass deflections, five tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, and two interceptions.
The veteran defender took a step back in pass coverage in 2024, possessing a 77.4 completion percentage allowed on targets (career-worst), a 108.4 pass rating allowed when targeted, and giving up four receiving touchdowns (tied for second-most in his career).
However, PFF paints a different picture as Reid held his own in pass coverage (77.4 grade – 12th among 170 qualified safeties) and was good in run defense (75.9 grade). Overall, he was the 20th-best graded safety at 76.9.
Based on his performance in 2024 and over the last few years, Reid should land another job with a contender that needs a versatile free safety. As for the Chiefs, they already have Reid’s replacements in-house with Bryan Cook and Jaden Hicks.
Cook finished his third year with the club after the Chiefs took him with the 62nd overall pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Meanwhile, Hicks wrapped up his rookie season with the team after being selected in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Both young guys look ready to take that next step in their careers as they potentially fill in for Reid, who will likely enter free agency next month.
2. Nick Bolton, Linebacker
Along with Reid, veteran linebacker Nick Bolton may not factor into the Chiefs’ plan for the 2025 season.
After spending the first four years of his career with the Chiefs, Bolton will be an unrestricted free agent next month. When speaking at the NFL Scouting Combine this week, Chiefs GM Brett Veach told reporters this is a defensive draft.
“I think it’s more of a defensive draft,” Veach said (h/t Charles Goldman of AtoZSports.com). “I think that the talent is on the defensive line and the corners, and I think it’s a solid linebacking crew.”
If that’s the case, Bolton could be out the door, where he could potentially land a nice deal in free agency. This past season with the Chiefs, the 24-year-old linebacker had 106 combined tackles, 11 tackles for loss, seven quarterback hits, six pass deflections, three sacks and an interception.
It was the third time in Bolton’s career that he had 100 or more combined tackles in a season. The fourth-year linebacker wasn’t overly spectacular in run defense (67.1 grade on PFF – ranked 85th out of 189 qualified linebackers) and coverage (66.1 – ranked 40th).
However, at his age and ability to stay relatively healthy, Bolton should have potential suitors in free agency.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs do not have a viable backup waiting behind Bolton. That means they will have to use some draft capital to find the next Bolton, who the Chiefs got in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
3. Charles Omenihu, EDGE
Lastly, Smith getting the franchise tag likely spells the end of Charles Omenhiu’s tenure with the Chiefs.
The veteran defensive end signed a two-year, $16 million deal with Kansas City in Mar. 2023 after the previous two seasons with the San Francisco 49ers.
Omenihu only appeared in 17 games (two starts) across two seasons with the Chiefs. He didn’t make his 2024 debut until Week 13. The veteran pass rusher suffered an ACL injury in the AFC title game in 2023.
Despite the limited action, Omenihu still had eight sacks and 16 quarterback pressures in his two-year stint with the Chiefs. Kansas City will likely move on from the veteran defender as they can find his replacement in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The Chiefs hope that former first-round pick Felix Anudike-Uzomah can finally live up to his draft status and become a playmaker off the edge in 2025. Kansas City will also try to sign a veteran on the cheap once they figure out their cap situation.
Andy Reid and Co. saw up close in Super Bowl 59 that you cannot have too much defensive line depth. Omenihu will not be a part of that, but we should expect the Chiefs to find at least one or two potential starters off the edge in the draft.
