Chiefs officially release Jamaal Charles

The Kansas City Chiefs have officially released running back Jamaal Charles.

The Kansas City Chiefs have decided to part ways with running back Jamaal Charles.

Charles’ health and cap number had both become serious concerns in the last year, given that the running back had a hard time staying on the field. Charles has only played in 8 games, making only 5 starts, in the last two seasons and faced an uphill climb to make it back again next year.

Charles was due a cap hit of over $6.1 million in 2017, a cost prohibitive amount for a running back of his age and declining health. The Chiefs could still work out a way to bring Charles back into the fold on the roster for a much lesser amount, but the Chiefs need the immediate cap room and might not have been able to work out a restructured amount. They might also want the open market to tell Charles what he is worth.

Charles rushed for 7,260 yards and 43 touchdowns in his Chiefs career. He also had 285 catches for 2,457 receiving yards and another 20 touchdowns through the air.