The Kansas City Chiefs made a major move on Thursday, taking one of the highly-coveted free agents off the market.
According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Chiefs plan to use the franchise tag on star guard Trey Smith. The 25-year-old Smith will be signed to a fully-guaranteed one-year, $23.5 million contract.
The #Chiefs are planning to franchise tag star guard Trey Smith, sources say. An intriguing move, as KC keeps one of its best players for $23.4M on a 1-year, fully guaranteed deal. pic.twitter.com/IOnctKg7WE
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 27, 2025
With Smith getting the franchise tag, Kansas City has time to try and ink the former sixth-round pick to a long-term deal. However, the Chiefs must find a way to fit Smith’s franchise tag into their 2025 financial plans.
Heading into free agency, Kansas City is only projected to have $7.9 million in cap space, which isn’t enough room to sign players on the open market. Therefore, the Chiefs will have to rework some contracts to create room for Smith and other guys on the team they might want to bring back.
Speaking of other guys on the team, with Smith’s return, the Chiefs might have to say goodbye to a few players who have played well over the last few years.
The Chiefs might have their replacements on the roster. And if they don’t, Kansas City might have to use the draft to fill in the necessary holes. Below, we’ll highlight three players that might be out of Kansas City this offseason.
1. Justin Reid, Safety
The veteran safety might’ve played his last down with the Chiefs in Super Bowl 59. Reid has done a good job solidifying the backend of the Chiefs’ defense the past three years.
The 28-year-old free safety doesn’t get talked about as one of the better DBs in the league, but he’s one of Kansas City’s best defenders, which is all that counts. This past season, Reid had 87 combined tackles, nine pass deflections, five tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, and two interceptions.
The veteran defender took a step back in pass coverage in 2024, possessing a 77.4 completion percentage allowed on targets (career-worst), a 108.4 pass rating allowed when targeted, and giving up four receiving touchdowns (tied for second-most in his career).
However, PFF paints a different picture as Reid held his own in pass coverage (77.4 grade – 12th among 170 qualified safeties) and was good in run defense (75.9 grade). Overall, he was the 20th-best graded safety at 76.9.
Based on his performance in 2024 and over the last few years, Reid should land another job with a contender that needs a versatile free safety. As for the Chiefs, they already have Reid’s replacements in-house with Bryan Cook and Jaden Hicks.
Cook finished his third year with the club after the Chiefs took him with the 62nd overall pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Meanwhile, Hicks wrapped up his rookie season with the team after being selected in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Both young guys look ready to take that next step in their careers as they potentially fill in for Reid, who will likely enter free agency next month.