The Kansas City will likely have Patrick Mahomes back in time for the majority of, if not the entirety of, the 2026 NFL season. Expecting him to be the same guy he was before his season-ending ACL tear this past December, though, could get this front office in trouble.
Mahomes can't go on carrying a running back room that failed to generate much offense in 2025 because of ex-offensive coordinator Matt Nagy's milquetoast play-calling. The Chiefs must dedicate bandwidth to improving the position, but they may not need to be overly aggressive about it.
The Chiefs reportedly freed up around $11 million in cap space by restructuring Mahomes' contract on Tuesday (h/t @kpatra), but that doesn't mean they'll want to use most of those funds on a running back in free agency. After all, there have been recent campaigns in which Kansas City thrived by using a committee approach.
Why not take a look at the 25-year-old Tyler Allgeier, who is an unrestricted free agent this offseason?
Tyler Allgeier Would Be Perfect in Chiefs RB Platoon
For starters, signing Allgeier wouldn't break the Chiefs' bank. OverTheCap lists his valuation at $2.6 million, whereas Spotrac projects an annual market value of $1.8 million. That's a lot cheaper than the likes of Breece Hall ($10.3 million), Kenneth Walker III ($9 million), and Travis Etienne ($6.8 million).
Additionally, Allgeier shares a collegiate connection with head coach Andy Reid. The veteran RB attended BYU about 40 years after Reid was an offensive tackle for the Cougars, leading to the start of his coaching career as a graduate assistant in 1982. Perhaps that shared history will earn brownie points in the 67-year-old HC's eyes.
Truthfully, there are more than enough on-field reasons to make this a perfect potential free-agent union.
General manager Brett Veach and the Chiefs' front office don't need to overthink this offseason. Rookie Brashard Smith is under contract and looks like a checkdown demon, while Kareem Hunt has been a steady hand in the backfield through back-to-back championships and can likely be brought back on a discount.
Add in offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy's return — fresh off of making the Chicago Bears' room of D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai look monstrous with 144.5 yards per game — and Allgeier might be the bargain deal needed to tie the backfield together.
With funds not exactly at a premium, there's no need for the Chiefs to splurge on a running back in free agency or the draft. Trench depth on both sides of the ball, though particularly on defense, is a far more important need to expend resources on.
Allgeier joining the vet and the young YAC threat could make the most sense for the former fifth-round pick as well. He has had hip and knee injuries, which could only truly improve with proper maintenance. Joining a room that could ease him a long could be his best bet to get healthy and have a career year under Bieniemy, possibly cashing out a year from now in a less-stacked free agent market.