Kansas City Chiefs: Three starters who could be cut in 2021
By Chris Clark
KC Chiefs who could be cut in 2021 – Tyrann Mathieu
This would be the toughest cut to this roster on many levels. There’s no question that the Honey Badger’s fire and talent helped bring the Lombardi Trophy back to Kansas City. Tyrann Mathieu brought an intensity to the defense in 2019 that had been lacking in years prior. Mathieu came to Kansas City to win the big one and that’s just what he helped this team to do.
His abilities at the safety position have certainly helped raise the level of play for the young and inexperienced cornerbacks in the Chiefs’ secondary. While he helped this young group as they gained some experience, his time in being a leader there could possibly come to an end.
Even though he signed a three-year contract in the 2019 offseason, Chiefs Kingdom may only get to see two of them. None of this is to say that Mathieu wouldn’t be wanted in Kansas City, but the business side of pro football can too often produce some unkind fruit.
If Mathieu does indeed get cut, it would certainly only be because he’d become a cap causality. Cutting the veteran safety would free up around $15M in cap space, which the Chiefs could be forced to do depending on where the cap is set.
Much like the linebacker position, letting Mathieu go gets tricky with the impending free agency of Daniel Sorensen. Thankfully, the Chiefs still have second-year man Juan Thornhill at the position, who will likely look better next year as he’s spent this year returning from a knee injury.
General Manager Brett Veach will somehow have to wave his magic wand to reduce Mathieu’s cap hit or to improve the position with different personnel. Thankfully, Steve Spagnuolo is crafty enough to use whatever pieces he has to create a decent secondary if their leader is in fact cut.
If someone does have to fill Mathieu’s shoes, hopefully, they’ll carry the torch of the fire that he brings to the team. No one wants to imagine a Honey Badger-less Chiefs’ defense, but that may unfortunately be the cold reality in 2021.