Kansas City Chiefs: Three starters who could be cut in 2021
By Chris Clark
KC Chiefs who could be cut in 2021 – Damien Williams
While running back Damien Williams wasn’t a starter in 2020, it’s likely that he would have been had he not opted out due to COVID-19. Even with the Chiefs drafting Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the first round of the 2020 draft, he likely would have been fighting to knock Williams out of his starting role.
Coming off of a stellar postseason performance that culminated in a Super Bowl win, Williams had firmly planted himself as the RB1 headed into 2020. But the COVID-19 player opt-out changed all of that.
Williams really should be applauded for missing the 2020 season. With his mother fighting stage 4 cancer, he opted to miss a prime year in his career to help keep her safe. And while he did the honorable thing, that doesn’t keep the business side of professional football from moving forward. With the emergence of Edwards-Helaire, Williams now appears to be expendable.
Once again, the salary cap rules the day, and that reason alone could have Williams potentially looking for a new team in 2021. By cutting the veteran running back, the Chiefs stand to save over two million dollars against the cap headed into next season.
Saving that money could mean extending another running back like Darrel Williams or possibly working to bring Le’Veon Bell back. With the likelihood of losing Edwards-Helaire to injury for the rest of the regular season, the Chiefs may just get to see which of those two running backs are worth trying to bring back next year.
While Williams did the noble thing in opting out, it may mean that the end of his time in Kansas City is inevitable this offseason. If that proves to be true, Chiefs Kingdom can always be thankful for his late-season heroics that helped to put them over the top in 2019.
Seeing Williams run that final touchdown in for Kansas City in the Super Bowl may just have been the last time that Chiefs Kingdom will see him make a play in a Chiefs uniform. Look for his name to be a potential cut headed into 2021.