Chiefs' 1st Move With 2025 Super Bowl Over is Clear
By Joe Summers
The Kansas City Chiefs' quest for a three-peat fell just short in a stunning Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, and now the organization turns to a long offseason hoping to improve obvious holes on the roster.
Poor offensive line play was ultimately the Chiefs' undoing, as Patrick Mahomes was sacked six times by the Eagles' vaunted defensive front. With star guard Trey Smith a pending free agent expected to command a mammoth contract, the front office may need to get creative to avoid taking another step back in protection.
Joe Thuney just had one of the finest years of his career, earning All-Pro honors for the fourth time as he played both guard and left tackle after Kingsley Suamataia and Wanya Morris' respective struggles. He has just one season left on his contract, but Brett Veach can't waste any time. The Chiefs need to extend Thuney now, keeping him on the roster for the foreseeable future while freeing up some cap space to utilize in the coming months.
What Joe Thuney has been able to do in the back half of the season, and continued to do in the post season, is one of the most remarkable feats I have ever seen at the OL position. Truly incredible.
— Mitch Morse (@mithenmor60) February 5, 2025
Chiefs Must Extend Joe Thuney to Begin Offseason
Thuney carries a cap hit of just over $26 million next year and a base salary of around $15 million. Kansas City only has $15.7 million in available cap space, which complicates matters given the number of pending free agents. Between Smith, Justin Reid, Nick Bolton, Hollywood Brown, and more, the Chiefs just don't have enough room to keep everyone.
However, voiding the last year of Thuney's current deal to offer a restructured extension could give Veach the space he needs to work with. We've seen guys like Mahomes and Travis Kelce rework their contracts to put a better team on the field, and it's reasonable to expect it to happen again.
If the Chiefs wait until next season to re-sign Thuney, his price will likely go up. Smith might reset the guard market with his upcoming contract, and the price typically just increases with each passing year. Thuney is one of the best offensive linemen in the NFL and is only 32 years old. He's got good football left, and shrewd teams like Kansas City don't wait to lock up players of his caliber.
For Thuney, a new extension would give him long-term security should he suffer any injury in 2025. It's a win-win proposition and needs to be the first move the Chiefs make to start the offseason.
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