To say Patrick Mahomes has been the Kansas City Chiefs' signal caller for nearly a decade doesn't feel real. But time flies, especially during the whirlwind that's been a dynastic run for the ages. Mahomes, along with head coach Andy Reid, tight end Travis Kelce, and defensive tackle Chris Jones, have been the four main characters during every single one of KC's five Super Bowl appearances and three Lombardi trophies.
They deserve all the respect and admiration in the football world for what they have given to this team and to the Kansas City community. Winning one Super Bowl takes buy-in from hundreds of people within a single organization. Winning three of them takes sustained success in a number of areas. And free agency is a massive reason why the Chiefs have been able to cycle players in and out, continuously getting the best out of nearly every person who steps into the building.
General manager Brett Veach is the head of the snake on any and all personnel decisions, and has the final say in free agency, save for Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt, who actually writes the checks. Veach, like any general manager, has had his fair share of misses when it comes to free agency. But more often than not, he's found a way to hit on most of his gambles. That's a really hard thing to do. What's even harder is signing free agents who go on to build Hall of Fame resumes with their best years coming on the Chiefs.
A deep dive into the three best free agency Chiefs signings of the Mahomes era
LG Joe Thuney
Left guard may not be the sexiest position in the NFL, but Joe Thuney, without a doubt, deserves a spot on this highly touted list for his efforts as a Chief. Thuney signed with the Chiefs prior to the 2021 season, after five solid seasons in New England. He came onto the scene already a made man in the league, winning two Super Bowls with the Patriots and making second-team All-Pro in 2019.
Veach handed him a five-year, $80 million contract, which at the time was a gargantuan amount of money for a guard and reset the market. But because Thuney was such a technically sound lineman with a calm demeanor and a leader's mentality, Chiefs fans had no problem with it, especially with all the pressure Mahomes had faced for years past from up the arc.
Immediately, Thuney stepped on the field and was living up to his contract. He rarely ever got beat off his stance, and was always right where he needed to be post-snap. Throughout his five seasons in Kansas City, Thuney missed just three regular-season games, gained another two Super Bowl rings from the Chiefs back-to-back, and made first-team All-Pro in consecutive seasons in 2023 and '24.
It cannot be understated what Thuney was able to accomplish while on the field, but off the field, he was an incredible leader and great mentor to now the Chiefs' two premier inside o-linemen, Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith. His impact was greater than anything anybody saw from afar, and he protected the league's best quarterback better than anybody.
S Tyrann Mathieu
This is about as obvious a choice as one gets. The Chiefs don't win their first Super Bowl in 50 years back in 2019 if not for Tyrann Mathieu's efforts on the field and within Kansas City's locker room. As a third-round pick in 2013, Mathieu rose up the ranks in his five years at Arizona and broke out in his lone season in Houston. It was that season that prompted newly hired defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo to plead hard for Veach to go get Mathieu.
Veach listened, and we're all glad for it. The 'Honey Badger' signed a lofty three-year, $42 million contract at the time top of the market money for a safety. But Mathieu earned every bit of it as a Chief. He had an aura about him that shook the ground within Chiefs players, coaches, and fans. A calm and calculated aggressiveness that flipped the Chiefs' defense within a few months to one of the worst units in the league, to a side of the ball that opposing teams had to respect.
He, along with recently traded for Frank "the shark" Clark, brought a moxie to the Chiefs' defense that was desperately needed. And that sparked not only Kansas City's victory in Super Bowl LIV, but also etched the team's mindset to mold into a champion. Mathieu played the extent of his signed contract, amassing two first-team All-Pros and a pair of Pro-Bowl nods.
In 47 regular-season games for the Chiefs, he had 213 total tackles, 13 interceptions (two of them for TDs), 27 passes defensed, three sacks, and six quarterback hits. He produced more than Veach or Spags could have ever imagined. Tyrann Mathieu will forever live on in Chiefs lore.
K Harrison Butker
Is this partially cheating because the Chiefs signed Butker off of the Carolina Panthers practice squad in 2017, so he wasn't technically a free agent? Yes. Do I care? No. Harrison Butker's impact on this franchise is too big to leave him off a list like this for such a small infraction. Because, as a practice squad player, you are basically a free agent, as any team has the right to offer you a contract within a given timeframe.
Which is exactly what Brett Veach did within just two months of taking the GM job from John Dorsey and the same draft year the Chiefs selected Mahomes. Butker was drafted by the Panthers just three months prior, but was waived soon after, and signed to Carolina's practice squad, opening the door for the Chiefs to swoop in. He was signed to take over for the injured longtime kicker Cairo Santos
But when Butker began kicking, it was clear the Chiefs may have found a diamond in the rough. Now nine years later, Butker is recognized as one of the premier kickers in the sport and has been awarded two-market resetting deals by the Chiefs in 2019 and 2024. It would take too long to list off all the game-saving/game-winning kicks Butker has drilled for the Chiefs for nearly a decade. No kicker is perfect, but there's not a guy right now that I would want in a big game more than Harrison Butker.
Say whatever you want about what the man says off the field. That's a different conversation for another day. But purely for what he has done on the field for the Chiefs cannot be replicated and perhaps will never be bested. For how many times he's come in clutch in the absolute biggest moments through every phase of this dynasty should not go unnoticed.
Honorable Mentions: WR Sammy Watkins, S Justin Reid
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