Did the Chiefs make a major mistake in their handling of Jamaal Charles?

The Kansas City Chiefs now face the worst case scenario after their release of Jamaal Charles. Did they make a mistake with his release?

When the Kansas City Chiefs released Jamaal Charles earlier this offseason, the questions were few. Most NFL analysts and even fans understood that Charles was coming in with a large cap hit after another season-ending injury. His release might have surprised some, but for the most part, the process was understood. The NFL, after all, is a business.

Two months later, Charles is now a member of the Denver Broncos, having signed a one-year deal on Tuesday. The immediate reaction of fans on social media was understandably upset, given that the Broncos are the hated rivals. In addition, Charles only fueled the fire with his remarks online and at his Broncos press conference, saying that he’s always wanted to play with Denver and that it’s “personal” against K.C.

With one late afternoon announcement, the feeling regarding Charles’ release has changed. Or it should have, at least. That’s because a closer look at the Broncos announcement shows terms of the deal were easy to swallow for any team, even one living as close to the cap ceiling as the Chiefs.

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At the point of his release, Charles was due to count over $6 million against the Chiefs cap. While general manager John Dorsey hasn’t filled in the details as to whether or not the Chiefs even attempted to restructure Charles’ deal, it’d be frustrating to find out if they didn’t bother. Charles made it clear in his remarks after signing with the Broncos that it’s personal, and it makes sense if the Chiefs hadn’t even tried to retain their franchise icon.

Hoping for Charles to be healthy has become an annual exercise in frustration, and it wasn’t worth another year for $6 million or more, but at $1 million as a base guarantee, it’s an obvious choice to make. When healthy, Charles is the best running back on the Chiefs roster, more so than Spencer Ware’s brightest moments and Kareem Hunt’s highest potential. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, having a $1 million wild card who could end up as the team’s best offensive weapon is a choice you make every time.

Now it’s possible that Jamaal Charles refused to restructure his contract. It’s possible he meant what he said — that he’s always wanted to play with the Denver Broncos. If so, it’s possible that Charles offered John Elway a deal he wouldn’t also give John Dorsey. If that’s the case, there’s nothing the Chiefs could have done and this turns out to be a sad story for longtime Charles fans.

However, Charles seems to be taking this personally from the Chiefs because they let him go, and maybe this means they weren’t even open to keeping him around in any way. If so, Charles’s chip on his shoulder makes sense, and it means the Chiefs made a serious mistake by not offering to keep him around.

A player with the ceiling of Jamaal Charles is always a choice you keep in house if the price is as good as it was for John Elway and the Broncos.

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