The Kansas City Chiefs made a huge splash by agreeing to terms on a deal with star RB Kenneth Walker III in the early stages of the free-agency tampering period. However, it wasn't all good news for GM Brett Veach on Monday, despite having signed his running back of the future.
The Las Vegas Raiders added a massive reinforcement up front by signing star center Tyler Linderbaum to a lucrative, long-term contract. But beyond just watching a divisional rival revamp its offensive line, Linderbaum's arrival in Sin City might directly hurt the Chiefs' finances.
Creed Humphrey Might Want a Raise After Tyler Linderbaum's New Contract
According to ESPN insider Adam Schefter, the Raiders will give Linderbaum a three-year deal worth a whopping $81 million, including $60 million guaranteed. That contract makes him the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history.
More than that, it's also a far cry from Humphrey's deal. He was once the highest-paid center in football at just $17 million. Now, much like it happens every single time someone resets the market, Humphrey might now want a new deal.
As things stand, the Chiefs have $24 million in available cap space, according to Over The Cap. Giving Humphrey an extension would actually provide Kansas City with an additional $10.62 million, so the timing would make sense to a degree.
That said, the Chiefs might want to take things slowly with Humphrey. He's two years older than the 25-year-old Linderbaum, and he's still signed through the 2028 season, so it's not like the Chiefs would be obliged to give him another raise just for the sake of it, at least not this season.
Of course, that's not to say that Humphrey doesn't deserve to be the highest earner at his position. He led all centers with an 88.8 Pro Football Focus grade last season, also ranking first in pass-block grade (84.1) and second in run-block grade (88.5).
Humphrey allowed a total of eight pressures, two QB hits, and one sack, and was called for two penalties on 1,093 snaps. Even with the Chiefs' offensive line struggling to stay at his level, he stepped up every Sunday to prove why he was once the highest-paid center in the game.
Regardless, the Chiefs might want to prioritize other deals at this moment. And even though they should do right by their star center and work something out at some point in the future, they should focus on adding more firepower to the roster first and let things sort themselves out in the season.