The Kansas City Chiefs were pointed to as a potential landing spot for David Njoku in the 2026 offseason. On the surface, the fit made a great deal of sense, taking pressure off Noah Gray, who was coming off an underwhelming 2025 season and allowing Travis Kelce to pace himself. However, not only did the Chiefs miss out on this fit, but it has come at their own expense, with the Los Angeles Chargers signing the veteran pass catcher.
ESPN's Ian Rapoport reported the signing with KC's division rival, handing the pass catcher a one-year deal worth up to $8 million. This is clearly a frustration for the Chiefs and takes away a perfect final free agency signing. The remaining tight end market doesn't offer any options with the upside of Njoku and pushes the Chiefs into likely moving forward with its current roster at the position.
Kansas City moving a bit too slowly cost them, and will now present their defense a clear challenge against a confident Charger team. This is a huge part of the 2026 season for the Chiefs in reclaiming their past division dominance after struggling against the Chargers and Broncos in the 2025 season. Njoku joining Los Angeles makes this unquestionably harder and gives the franchise a clear mismatch.
If there was one advantage the Chiefs had over the Chargers heading into the season, it was a lack of depth when it comes to pass-catching weapons. Njoku helps shift this perspective and gives Justin Herbert a security blanket capable of consistently bailing the offense out of trouble.
Chiefs made a mistake allowing division rival to land team's perfect target David Njoku
For the Chiefs, this appears to be a vote of confidence in Gray despite the 27-year-old coming off a season where he put up the lowest catch percentage of his career. Add in the overall lack of production with only 178 receiving yards, and it is clear why the Chiefs would've benefited from a signing they allowed a division rival to make.
Njoku missed out on the opportunity to play with the league's best quarterback and has joined an offense noted for its recent playoff collapses. Regardless, there is no denying that this move is noteworthy from Kansas City's perspective and gives Herbert a piece that will test the Chiefs' young secondary in both of the divisional matchups.
While the franchise missed out on the most obvious fit, there should still be an effort to add to the tight end position in the coming weeks. The lack of trust in Gray and the need to keep Kelce healthy deep into the season make the team's need clear, even if it isn't going to be Njoku filling the obvious void.
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