The Kansas City Chiefs will once again be watching the Super Bowl from the couch as they fell to the Steelers; but more importantly what are they going to do about running back Jamaal Charles?
The Kansas City Chiefs are going to find themselves in a very awkward position as the offseason continues. Why it’s going to be awkward is that they have several big names that will demand top dollar, but very little in terms of actual cap space.
The sad truth for the Chiefs is that there are some players they are going to have to let walk. The only way the team will be able to keep staple players on the roster like nose tackle Dontari Poe and safety Eric Berry, is that there might be some players they have to cut.
The biggest name that comes up for the team when talking about possibly letting go, is running back Jamaal Charles.
Jamaal Charles has been hit with the injury bug bad over the last two seasons, resulting in him only playing in eight games over the last two years. A torn ACL halted his 2015 season, and instead of a triumphant return in 2016, knee issues resulted in him being placed on IR for the second time in two years. This was the second time an ACL tear has sidelined Jamaal for a year. But the last time this happened he came back and rushed for over 1500 yards, a far cry from the 40 yards he had in 2016.
Charles is also 30 years old now, a time when most running backs seem to watch their numbers slowly decline. Kansas City also has not one, but three possible replacements already on the team. Spencer Ware took most of the snaps in 2016, with Charcandrick West, and even Tyreek Hill taking the ball from quarterback Alex Smith, so they have options.
The Chiefs, according to SportTrac, have only a little of $3 million in cap space, and with the estimated $170 million cap projection, that leaves them with very little room to work with. It leaves even less room when you think about who they need to sign on the defensive side of the ball. So what can they do?