3 Chiefs Free Agents Most Likely to Re-Sign This Offseason

NFL free agency opens in less than two weeks and all eyes are on the Kansas City Chiefs. Per Spotrac, the defending Super Bowl Champions have 19 unrestricted free agents on their roster with names ranging from defensive tackle Chris Jones to inside linebacker Willie Gay Jr.

Having said that, the Chiefs only have just over $9.6 million in cap space to work with, meaning not everyone can be brought back. Re-signing some players must be prioritized over others especially if Kansas City hopes to win a third consecutive title next year.

Here are three Chiefs free agents who are most likely to re-sign this offseason.

1. DT Chris Jones

There isn't a bigger free agent that the Chiefs must re-sign this offseason that Chris Jones.

Drafted 37th overall in 2016, Jones has been one of the NFL's best defenders over the last near-decade. The former Mississippi State product has racked up 75.5 sacks since the beginning of the 2016 campaign, which ranks eighth-best league-wide during that stretch. That's without mentioning how he's been named to five Pro Bowls while earning All-Pro honors five times.

The Chiefs likely wouldn't have won Super Bowl LVIII without Jones, either. The 29-year-old defensive tackle is coming off a regular season that saw him rack up 20 solo tackles, 10.5 sacks, and four defended passes across 16 games before tallying another four solo efforts with 0.5 tackles, two tipped passes, and a forced fumble in the postseason.

Jones is now projected to earn $28.4 million annually on his next deal, per Spotrac. While that's quite a chunk of change, it's well worth it for the fifth-best DT in the NFL in 2023, per Pro Football Focus' grading system. Considering how The Athletic reports that there's "growing optimism" that the Houston, MS native will remain in Kansas City, it looks like there's a good chance that the Chiefs' best defender sticks around.