3 Chiefs Free Agents Who Could Still Re-Sign With Kansas City

The Kansas City Chiefs have been busy throughout this year's free agency period. General manager Brett Veach has not only re-signed key players like Chris Jones and Drue Tranquill while bringing in fresh faces like Marquise Brown and Irv Smith Jr. in hopes of winning a third consecutive Super Bowl next season.

But despite all the moves made thus far, the Chiefs have holes to fill. Fortunately, there are still plenty of free agents — including several familiar names — who can help flesh out the roster given that the franchise still has over $15.8 million to spend, per Spotrac.

Bringing back familiar names can sometimes be more beneficial than rolling the dice on new ones, so here are three Chiefs free agents who can still re-sign in Kansas City.

1. RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire

After being drafted 32nd overall in 2020, the Chiefs rolled with Clyde Edwards-Helaire as their lead running back for his first two seasons in the league. Unfortunately, the ex-LSU Tiger struggled to live up to expectations, resulting in Isiah Pachecho usurping him as the RB1 when he arrived in town in 2022.

Pacheco leading the backfield saw Edwards-Helaire's numbers drop to new lows in 2023. The 24-year-old rusher finished with only 70 carries, 223 rushing yards, and one touchdown while playing a career-low 22% of offensive snaps before becoming a free agent this spring.

But just because Pachecho is the RB1 doesn't mean that CEH can't return for at least one more season.

For starters, the Chiefs don't have any trustworthy options behind Pacheco on the depth chart at the moment. While they could wind up using one of their draft picks to select a backup rusher, it makes sense to stick with a known commodity like Edwards-Helaire who's more than familiar with the coaching staff and players.

Has the former first-rounder lived up to the hype? No, but he's far from the worst RB in the NFL. Even though he averaged a career-worst 3.2 yards per carry last season, he still owns a mark of 4.2 on his career. He also doesn't even turn 25 until April, meaning there's a decent chance that we haven't seen the best of his abilities just yet.

If he's willing to take a cheap "prove yourself" deal, there's a real possibility that the Chiefs wouldn't mind re-signing Edwards-Helaire this offseason.

2. DE Mike Danna

The Chiefs had one of the NFL's best defenses last season and a lot of that had to do with players having career years. One of those individuals in question is none other than free-agent defensive end Michael Danna.

A fifth-round pick by Kansas City in 2020, Danna continues to improve with each passing year and the 2023 campaign was his best to date. According to Pro Football Focus, the former Michigan Wolverine set new personal bests in total pressures (41), sacks (8), solo tackles (34), and run stops (31).

He also showed improved discipline, going the entire regular season without taking a penalty while missing a career-low 6.4% of his tackling attempts.

Even though he's coming off a career year, there haven't been any teams linked to Danna this offseason. It's surprising, but it could also mean good news for the Chiefs since it might imply that they won't have to compete with other teams to bring the 26-year-old back to the fold.

Danna has become an important part of Kansas City's defense and it'd be silly if the Chiefs didn't at least consider bringing him back. He's only going to get better with another Super Bowl run under his belt, so why not see if he can reach double-digit sacks in Chiefs colors next season?

3. WR Mecole Hardman

Mecole Hardman's NFL career has been interesting to watch, to say the least.

After a solid three-year stint with the Georgia Bulldogs, the Chiefs selected Hardman 56th overall in 2019. Early draft analysis had experts comparing him to Tyreek Hill due to his speed, however, the 26-year-old wide receiver never came close to reaching those heights as he failed to hit the 700-yard mark in each of his first four seasons before becoming a free agent and signing with the New York Jets last offseason.

The fresh start that Hardman hoped to see in New York didn't go as planned, though.

He only recorded one reception for six yards across five games with the Jets before being traded back to the Chiefs for a 2025 sixth-round pick just ahead of the 2023 trade deadline. He went on to record 19 catches for 180 yards and one TD with the Chiefs across 10 games between the regular season and playoffs.

But even though Hardman is still a free agent, I wouldn't rule out a return. The Chiefs showed how much they liked him by trading for him last season despite letting him walk as a free agent. He's also capable of clutch moments, highlighted by his game-winning TD catch at Super Bowl 58.

The Chiefs might not have won the second of back-to-back Super Bowls without Hardman, so the least the franchise could do is reward him with another contract. It's clear that last season's divorce didn't work out, so it's likely mutually beneficial for both sides to run it back one more time.

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