Arrowheadlines: Chiefs expected to be quiet in free agency

Chiefs headlines for Saturday, March 9

The latest

NFL free agency 2024: Top players, team predictions, more | ESPN

Which teams could be quiet in free agency?

Kansas City Chiefs: The Chiefs have three key free agents in Jones, OT Donovan Smith and LB Willie Gay, and they have Sneed on the tag. Almost all of their resources will go toward re-signing these players, and they probably can’t retain all four. So I expect them to be quiet in terms of acquiring new players and making splashes in free agency.

Free Agent Wide Receiver Kendrick Bourne Recently Spoke Out His ACL Recovery And Where He’d Like To Play In The 2024 Season | Last Word on Sports

Possible Team Fits

Kansas City Chiefs

The 2022 and 2023 seasons proved that the Kansas City Chiefs do not need a superstar wide receiver to win a Super Bowl. However, they do need somebody capable of catching the ball when Travis Kelce starts to slow down. The Chiefs appear to have hit a home run with Rashee Rice, but this team needs another reliable set of hands. Kendrick Bourne is more than capable of being that guy, as the free agent has the shifty playstyle that meshes well with Andy Reid’s YAC-heavy offense.

2024 NFL free agency: Sorting all 32 teams by chances of ‘winning’ offseason via draft, signings, trades | CBS Sports

Chiefs

Patrick Mahomes. Andy Reid. Travis Kelce. That means another title bid is possible. But they may be forced to pick and choose between defensive stars with both Chris Jones and L’Jarius Sneed costing a pretty penny. And that’s not even accounting for ongoing questions about wide receiver depth.

NFL Free Agency 2024: One Player Every Team Should Sign This Offseason | Sports Illustrated

Kansas City Chiefs

Free agent: Chris Jones, IDL

It’s time for the Chiefs to step up after Jones delivered back-to-back dominant postseasons to help his team win two Super Bowls. Jones is likely priority No. 1 in Kansas City, but the team has cap space issues after paying Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. Expect Jones to become the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL, with the Chiefs or a different team.

Reid on Chiefs’ defense in 2023 ‘The one consistent part of our team’ | Chiefs Wire

The 65-year-old head coach explained how the Chiefs’ defense was able to carry Kansas City throughout the season and was a crucial part of the Chiefs’ back-to-back Super Bowl campaigns.

“That was the one consistent part of our team,” Reid began. “Steve Spagnuolo does a great job with the defense, as do his guys. You can go right down the line with the coaches, the players — you saw this last year, you saw a bunch of young guys coming into the secondary, you saw the veteran players on defense help teach these young guys and show them the way.”

Reid alluded to the veteran players’ leadership and how those lessons taught during last season’s training sped up the development of the young players, leading to Kansas City possessing one of the best defenses in the NFL.

Colts sign former Chiefs S Armani Watts | Colts Wire

While this isn’t the name of the former Chiefs safety that many fans wanted to hear, Watts will be joining a safety room that desperately needed depth added.

Watts, 26, was a fourth-round pick with the Chiefs in the 2018 NFL draft. He has appeared in 53 career games but has made only one start so we should expect him to be a contributor on special teams while working into the rotation.

The Texas A&M product has never played more than 101 defensive snaps in a single season but has recorded 66%, 81% and 71% of the Chiefs special teams snaps.

Around the NFL

49ers agree to 1-year, $7M extension with RT Colton McKivitz | ESPN

The San Francisco 49ers have agreed to a one-year extension with right tackle Colton McKivitz to keep him under contract through the 2025 season.

McKivitz’s agents at AMDG Sports said Friday the deal for 2025 is worth $7 million with about $4.5 million in guarantees. McKivitz is entering the final season of a two-year, $4.56 million contract signed last offseason.

McKivitz originally joined the Niners as a fifth-round pick in 2020 and started five games his first three seasons before taking over the starting spot last season after Mike McGlinchey left in free agency.

McKivitz, 27, started all 17 games last season and played 98% of San Francisco’s offensive snaps. He also played every snap in three postseason games.

Steelers releasing veteran CB Patrick Peterson | NFL.com

Peterson said on his podcast last month that he hoped to remain in Pittsburgh, but the “question is” whether the Steelers still wanted him. Friday, we got the answer — at least at his current cost.

Peterson played all 17 games in his lone season in Pittsburgh, generating 42 tackles, two interceptions and 11 passes defensed. Frankly, he performed as well as one would expect a 13-year corner to play — holding his own for the most part but getting picked on at times. Down the stretch, with a banged-up secondary, Peterson moved to safety for the final four games of the regular season. He noted that he wouldn’t be against a switch to safety moving forward in the right situation.

Sources – Russell Wilson, Steelers to meet; QB spoke with Giants | ESPN

League sources described Wilson’s session with the Giants as an “exploratory meeting.” Wilson is expected to meet with other teams, including possibly the Las Vegas Raiders, sources said.

Wilson is meeting with teams ahead of his release by the Denver Broncos at the start of the league year on Wednesday. Sources told Schefter this week that the Broncos had granted Wilson permission to immediately begin speaking and meeting with other teams in their home cities.

The Steelers have only 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett under contract at quarterback. Mason Rudolph is entering free agency after starting three games for Pittsburgh last season.

In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride

Chiefs Draft: The team has met with Oregon RB Mar’Keise ‘Bucky’ Irving

Evaluation

Irving’s college career was marked by explosive plays and game-changing performances. His combination of acceleration, agility and vision made him a dynamic threat, capable of breaking open games with his electrifying runs.

One of Irving’s most intriguing qualities is his versatility. He can not only excel as a traditional ball-carrier but can also catch passes out of the backfield.

Although he demonstrates impressive acceleration to burst through the line of scrimmage, Irving lacks breakaway speed — as evidenced by his 40-yard dash at the Combine. This limitation becomes apparent when he’s attempting to outrun defenders.

In addition, his burst occasionally leads him into trouble; he tends to collide with blockers instead of demonstrating the patience needed to maneuver around them effectively. His ability in pass protection has also been an area of concern. Moreover, his smaller size may not be well-suited for absorbing the heavy collisions he will see at the next level.

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