The Kansas City Chiefs cut down their roster to 53 players on Tuesday in preparation for the 2025 NFL season. Though there weren't many surprise cuts, veteran safety Mike Edwards and tight end Robert Tonyan were let go, which some fans may not have expected. Even so, both players could still end up on the roster, with Tonyan being the more likely of the two.
That said, the Chiefs are now ready to recapture a Super Bowl in 2025. If they can accomplish that goal, their roster will definitely look different in 2026. With that being said, here are four Chiefs players who won't be in Kansas City come next year.
1. Jawaan Taylor, RT
Despite being under contract in 2026, 2025 will likely be Jawaan Taylor's last season with Kansas City. Although Taylor is still on the books for $19.5 million in 2026, the Chiefs likely signed his replacement this offseason, grabbing left tackle Jaylon Moore on a two-year $30 million contract.
Moore was expected to become the Chiefs' starting left tackle in 2025. However, that was before the team drafted Ohio State tackle Josh Simmons, who was able to return from injury sooner than some expected. As a result, Moore has practiced at both right and left tackle during training camp and will be KC's swing tackle in 2025.
Thus, predicting he will take over for Taylor in 2026 is logical. Since joining the Chiefs in 2023, Taylor has been a polarizing player. In two seasons, the 27-year-old has allowed 12 sacks, 15 quarterback hits, 57 hurries, and 84 pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.
While those aren't great numbers, PFF still ranks him as a starting tackle in pass blocking. The bigger issue at play for Taylor has been penalties. The 287-year-old has recorded 37 penalties in two years with the Chiefs. Chiefs Kingdom gets frustrated by these penalties as it puts the team behind the chains, which has been detrimental in some cases.
Given that Kansas City has a cheaper option to play right tackle on the roster in 2026, Taylor being cut wouldn't be a surprise.
2. Travis Kelce, TE
As every day passes, the signs that Travis Kelce will retire after the 2025 season are getting stronger. On Tuesday, the 35-year-old got engaged to Taylor Swift. While being engaged and getting married usually aren't signs that a player could retire, in Kelce's case, it is.
For most of his career, future Hall of Fame tight end has been focused solely on football. That is what has helped him earn ten Pro Bowl selections, earn seven All-Pro nominations ( 4x first-team and 3x second-team), and win three Super Bowls.
However, over the past few years, Kelce has had other endeavors. In September of 2022, he and his brother Jason launched the "New Heights" podcast. Then, in the summer of 2023, he started dating Swift.
Although fans shouldn't get mad at the man for building a life outside of football, around this time is when you started to see a dip in production. Kelce has recorded fewer than 100 catches and been under 1,000 receiving yards in back-to-back seasons for the first time in a decade. Moreover, last year, the narrative was that he looked out of shape.
Despite the 35-year-old claiming he has a few more seasons left in him, many believe this could be his last season. If that's the case, Chiefs Kingdom will celebrate Kelce and wish him happiness in his future.
3. Marquise "Hollywood" Brown, WR
When the Chiefs signed Hollywood Brown during the 2024 offseason, they had high hopes of what he could do with Patrick Mahomes. The veteran receiver has speed that can scare defenses, and pairing that with another speedster like Xavier Worthy was enticing. Unfortunately, Brown sustained a shoulder injury during the first games of the 2024 preseason, which put him on injured reserve for most of the regular season.
Though he did return in Week 16, he didn't get much time to gel with the offense before the playoffs. As a result, it wasn't a huge factor in those games. Across three games, the 28-year-old recorded five receptions on 13 targets for 50 years. Still, Kansas City believed in Brown, which is why it re-signed him this offseason.
Even so, he sustained another injury during training camp this year. Thankfully, this injury wasn't serious enough to threaten his regular-season availability. Thus, Chiefs Kingdom will finally be able to see what brown will look like in the offense in 2025.
Nevertheless, given the fact that he will be 29 before the start of next season, Brown's might soon be deteriorating. That, coupled with the fact that the Chiefs have lots of young receivers, should spell the end to his time in Kansas City.
4. Kareem Hunt, RB
Kareem Hunt has a long history with the Chiefs organization. Kansas City originally drafted the 30-year-old in the third round of the 2017 NFL draft. He would go on to play 27 games with the franchise before getting cut because of domestic violence allegations.
In those 27 games, Hunt rushed for 2,151 yards on 453 carries and scored 15 touchdowns. He also added 833 yards and 10 touchdowns through the air. Following his release by the Chiefs, the Cleveland Browns signed him. After serving an eight-game suspension at the start of the 2019 season, Hunt would go on to play five years in Cleveland.
Kansas City brought the veteran back last season after Isiah Pacheco sustained a fractured fibula. Upon his return, head coach Andy Reid made comments to the media about how happy they were to have Hunt back and how much he's grown as a person. On the field, the 30-year-old put up decent statistics, rushing for 728 yards on 200 carries and scoring seven touchdowns.
However, at this point in Hunt's career, his skillset is extremely limited. As a result, if he doesn't retire after 2025, it's hard to see Kansas City bringing him back for 2026.