Kansas City Chiefs

With cap room ranked 31st in the league at $1607.8M and committed salary rising to $340.9M next season, the Chiefs are operating with almost no financial margin for error.

17 contracts expiring

Madden Tools Analysis

Nine starting spots have weak depth behind the starter.

Seven picks this season including two first-rounders, and 21 picks across three years, gives the Chiefs genuine resources to attack their roster holes through the draft.

• Acquired: Round 6 from 49ers, this draft
• Acquired: Round 3 from Rams, this draft
• Traded away: Round 6 to Jets, this draft
• Traded away: Round 7 to 49ers, this draft

The roster's top strength is its interior offensive line, anchored by Humphrey at 95, Trey Smith at 91, and a developing Simmons at 81, while the right edge and right tackle positions are the clear weakest spots on the depth chart.

• REDGEhigh

  R Mason Thomas, a 77 overall, starts on the right edge but the position ranks 31st among starters and the depth behind him is thin, making this the most urgent roster upgrade.

• RThigh

  Jaylon Moore, a 71 overall, starts at right tackle but the unit ranks 30th among starters and dead last in depth, leaving the blindside on the right completely exposed.

• SAMhigh

  Jeffrey Bassa, a 62 overall, starts at SAM and ranks last among all 13 SAM starters in the league, making this a critical upgrade target.

• SSmedium

  Chamarri Conner, a 76 overall, mans the strong safety spot but the position ranks 25th among starters and warrants reinforcement in the secondary.

• CBlow

  Mansoor Delane leads the cornerback group but the starter ranking of 23rd signals the unit needs quality depth behind him and L'Jarius Sneed.

• 77Kristian FultonCBKristian Fulton sits third on the cornerback depth chart behind Delane and Sneed, and releasing him frees $9.8M against a cap room ranked 31st in the league while leaving only $3.3M in dead money.Frees $9.8M · $3.3M dead
• 71Jaylon MooreRTJaylon Moore starts at a right tackle position ranked 30th in the league at just 71 overall, and his release frees $14.2M in cap space at the cost of only $4.4M in dead money, making him the single most impactful financial cut on the roster.Frees $14.2M · $4.4M dead
• 70Justin FieldsQBJustin Fields is the second quarterback on the depth chart behind Mahomes but carries a 70 overall and a fully clean release with $3.0M freed and zero dead money, making him a cap-efficient cut if a cheaper backup option is available.Frees $3.0M · $0 dead
• 65Mike CaliendoLGMike Caliendo backs up Suamataia at left guard at just 65 overall, and releasing him frees $1.1M while leaving only $200K in dead money, a minor but clean cap savings at a low-priority backup spot.Frees $1.1M · $200.0K dead

The Chiefs remain a Mahomes-driven contender with elite interior line play from Humphrey, Trey Smith, and a young Josh Simmons developing at left tackle. Kenneth Walker gives them a legitimate 91 overall backfield weapon, and Rashee Rice is emerging as a true WR1. The concern is structural: the right tackle position is a liability ranked 30th in the league, the right edge is nearly as bad at 31st, and the SAM linebacker spot is the weakest starter in the entire league at its position. Travis Kelce, entering the twilight of his career, remains productive but succession at tight end must become a priority sooner rather than later, and Chris Jones, while still dominant, is trending in the same direction. The cap picture is severe, with room ranked 31st this season and committed money climbing to $340.9M next season, limiting the ability to address all these holes at once. The young core headlined by Simmons, Mansoor Delane, Peter Woods, and Ashton Gillotte gives the franchise real developmental upside to grow into, making patience and draft capital deployment critical to sustaining the window.

The franchise was founded by oilman Lamar Hunt as a charter member of the American Football League, beginning play in 1960 as the Dallas Texans. Unable to share the Dallas market with the NFL's expansion Cowboys, Hunt moved the team to Kansas City in 1963 and renamed it the Chiefs, a nod to the nickname of Kansas City Mayor Harold Roe Bartle ("Chief"). Under coach Hank Stram, the team thrived: it won the 1962 AFL Championship as the Texans, then AFL titles again in 1966 and 1969. The Chiefs played in the first-ever Super Bowl (a 35-10 loss to Green Bay) and capped the AFL's existence by upsetting the Minnesota Vikings 23-7 in Super Bowl IV, the last game before the AFL-NFL merger took full effect in 1970. After the merger, the Chiefs entered a long competitive drought; the Marty Schottenheimer era restored a hard-nosed, defense-led identity around Derrick Thomas and Neil Smith, and Dick Vermeil's early-2000s teams featured a record-setting Priest Holmes offense, but a Super Bowl return remained elusive for half a century. The modern golden age began when Andy Reid was hired in 2013 and accelerated when the team drafted Patrick Mahomes in 2017. Mahomes took over in 2018 and the Chiefs became the NFL's defining dynasty, winning Super Bowls LIV, LVII and LVIII and reaching five Super Bowls in six years. Their bid for an unprecedented "three-peat" ended in a 40-22 Super Bowl LIX rout by the Philadelphia Eagles in February 2025. The 2025 season then unraveled: Mahomes tore his ACL (and LCL) in December, and the team finished 6-11 and out of the playoffs for the first time since 2014.