The Kansas City Chiefs have restructured the contract for running back Spencer Ware to allow for a bit more cap space (and to maybe help him make the team).
The Kansas City Chiefs could use some wiggle room. Spencer Ware is prepared to give them some—at least a little bit more than they had before.
Heading into this week, the Chiefs reportedly had $7.41 in salary cap space. That’s not a lot to work with heading into a regular season in which moves need to be made for the sake of injuries, fatigue or just personnel changes. It also doesn’t leave a lot of space for the Chiefs to make any further moves in training camp.
Whether or not they even plan to add another player—such as free agent cornerback Bashaud, who is visiting on Tuesday—running back Spencer Ware has agreed with Brett Veach to restructure his deal in a way that shifts the responsibility to him to earn his money and gives the Chiefs a bit more wiggle room. The details, per Field Yates:
Ware is coming back from a season-ending injury and the Chiefs have loaded up on more competition in the process. Running back is perhaps now the most loaded position on the roster. Not only is Kareem Hunt at the top of it, but Charcandrick West is still in the picture alongside new faces like Damien Williams (Miami Dolphins), Kerwynn Williams (Arizona Cardinals) and Darrel Williams (LSU Tigers). The Chiefs also worked out Marty Carter, a free agent rookie back, last weekend.
Given that Ware’s release could have given the Chiefs nearly $1.5 million in cap space, it likely works out well in his favor to restructure his deal so there’s less financial reasons for the Chiefs to release him before the regular season. Let’s say the Chiefs had liked Ware and Damien Williams equally. Now the Chiefs can’t point to Ware and say, “Well, financially this gives us more room to release him.”
In addition, this restructured deal puts the onus on Ware to earn the incentives. It’s great if Ware can do so for his own sake, and he clearly feels like he can meet those goals in front of him, even with Kareem Hunt on the roster ahead of him. However it’s also helpful for the team to have an incentivized running back in the fold, both for motivation and the bottom line.
It’s not a huge amount but when you are the Chiefs, every little bit helps.