Kansas City Chiefs: Free Agent Targets After Franchise Tag
By Ryan Hunt
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate (81) Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
The lack of Kansas City Chiefs news is cruel.
With teams like the Philadelphia Eagles resigning Riley Cooper, Jeremy Maclin, Jason Peters and Jason Kelce, fans are wondering what is going on.
Well, relax.
Dwayne Bowe re-signed at the last minute before the deadline and, with the likes of Brian Orakpo, Anquan Boldin and TE Jimmy Graham off the market, things are a little different. Now that the deadline for the franchise tag has come and gone , here is a look at who is still available.
Don’t be shocked if the Kansas City Chiefs do not re-sign Dexter McCluster, Branden Albert or Tyson Jackson. They can all be replaced through the draft. The Kansas City Chiefs need to fill positions at free safety, wide receiver, corner back and inside line backer and the best way to do so is through free agency.
Now that the salary cap has gone up to 133 million, the Chiefs have about $11 million to spend on free agents and draft picks. Since the Chiefs have limited cap space, they could go after tier two free agents that are up-and-coming or coming off injuries.
The first free agent who can solve the Chiefs’ problem at slot wide receiver is Golden Tate, who is indeed golden. He made clutch catch after clutch catch in the playoffs and, at twenty-five, still has years where he can get better.
Defensive lineman Red Bryant from the Seattle Seahawks is 6’4″, 323 lb. and can stuff the run with the best of them. He will most likely come in at veteran minimum. If you see a theme here with players from the Seattle Seahawks, well, if the team can get players who demolished Peyton Manning, then the Manning mystique will be missing in the two games the Chiefs play against him.
After signing Bryant, Kansas City Chiefs GM John Dorsey needs to pick up the phone and sign Green Bay Free agent wide receiver James Jones. He is only twenty nine years old and 6’1″, 208 lb. He’s a big wide receiver who can cut across the middle and make high catches. Two years ago he had 14 touchdowns. Hopefully he can retrieve some of the magic.
Another undervalued free agent that the Chiefs should sign is Daryl Smith out of Baltimore. He had over 57 tackles and 66 assists last year , with outstanding in coverage. He made three interceptions and had five sacks. Daryl is on the wrong side of 30 but still be valuable inside linebacker.
Lastly Safety Chris Clemons out of Miami he was all over the field with 93 combined tackles and assists. The speedster out of Clemson is also 6’1″ and can hang with the bigger wide receivers in the league. The Chiefs have to spend wisely or hopefully lock up long-term deals with Eric Berry and Alex Smith to free up some more cap space.
Tell me what you think, Chiefs fans. How many free agents will the Chiefs be able to sign? Do you think our own free agents will be back? I know John Dorsey said they were in talks, but do you think the talks are going well?