Patrick Mahomes contract extension helps KC Chiefs plan future signings
By Kole Berrey
Patrick Mahomes is going to be the quarterback of the KC Chiefs for the next ten years. Let’s look at why this contract won’t make it impossible to sign key free agents in the future.
What were you doing 12 years ago? I was 16 years old. Probably just got my license and was reveling in the freedom that I could drive my girlfriend and me to the movie theater three towns over by myself now. No more awkward parent drop off and pick ups to deal with. That seems like a lifetime ago.
Why is this of any importance?
Well, Patrick Mahomes just signed a 10 year contract extension with the Kansas City Chiefs. If you add on the current two years he has left on his deal, Mahomes is going to be with Kansas City for at minimum, the next 12 years.
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Over a decade ago, I was sitting in the back of my mom’s Chevy Tahoe with sweaty palms on a first date. Over the next decade, I get to be sweaty palmed on my couch watching Patrick Mahomes perform miracles on the field for my favorite team.
While universally this should be seen as a cause for celebration, there is going to be some push back from Chiefs fans and the NFL world as a whole wondering just how the Chiefs are going to field a competitive team with a huge chunk of money going to Mahomes.
The critics will say top paid quarterbacks never win the Super Bowl, and the Chiefs are going to have trouble retaining quality players and signing free agents.
This is simply not true.
The Chiefs may have to be smarter about who gets money, and probably won’t be able to bring in a ton of free agents every year, sure. That doesn’t mean they won’t be able to sign talent.
If anything, this helps the Chiefs. The thing that Brett Veach has shown as general manager for Kansas City is that he always has a plan, and he almost always delivers.
Having Mahomes under this deal allows Veach to do just that, plan.
The weight of the what if’s and uncertainty of the future of what a Mahomes extension will look like is no longer there.
Final Patrick Mahomes’ deal:
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 6, 2020
10-year extension worth up to $503 million.
It includes $477 in guarantee mechanisms and the ability for Mahomes to have outs if guarantee mechanisms aren’t exercised.
Mahomes was represented on the deal by @chriscabott and @leighsteinberg.
This is makes Mahomes the highest paid player in sports history and that is totally okay. Mahomes is set to make $2.8 million next year and $24.8 million the year after that. That is still an absolute BARGAIN. That means Veach has two more years of low hit cap to sign players to deals structured around Mahomes’ deal. Veach now knows what he is working with, and can sign players according to that knowledge.
Right now, the team for the Chiefs is Super Bowl caliber (obviously) and that is with the uncertainty surrounding Chris Jones.
Now imagine the Chiefs move on from Jones. They don’t sign him to $20 million a year. You know what that means? The Chiefs still have stars like Tyreek Hill, Frank Clark, Tyrann Mathieu, Mitchell Schwartz and Travis Kelce to pair with Mahomes. That is PHENOMENAL talent to support an MVP quarterback.
The Chiefs are still going to be able to load up on players and field a competitive squad every year. With Mahomes at the helm, that is going to launch them to the stratosphere as far as competitiveness goes.
You also have to consider that Mahomes can always restructure this deal. Maybe for the first five years he is paid somewhere around the $37 million range, and the back half of the deal is loaded with money. There are certain things that can be done to move money around and open up space to either bring in a free agent or retain certain stars the Chiefs already have on roster.
If I know one thing, it’s that Brett Veach is about as cap smart as they get. The Chiefs retained almost all starting members of last years squad, and at one point had less than $200 in space. No, not $200,000. Two Benjamin’s is all the Chiefs had to their name.
According to Spotrac, the Chiefs currently sit right around $4 million. That is asinine, and all because Veach was able to move money around.
Now that Mahomes is in Kansas City for the foreseeable and distant future, Veach and Co. can get to work on formulating a road map on keeping this team competitive and stocked full of quality players. Patrick Mahomes is poised to take advantage of that, and the Chiefs are in prime position to dominate the NFL for the next 12 years.
Next. All-Decade Chiefs Team for 2010s. dark
Remember where you were on this day, folks. Over a decade from now when Kansas City has five Super Bowls to its name and Patrick Mahomes is signing only his third contract in the league, you will be wondering where you were and what you were doing when news first broke that the MVP was staying for good.