Why releasing Justin Houston was the right move for the Chiefs

The Chiefs cut veteran linebacker Justin Houston on Sunday, and they made the right move to ensure future success for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Kansas City Chiefs made the right move last Sunday with the release of veteran linebacker Justin Houston. The move didn’t come as a surprise to many, but let’s take a look at why this move was the right one for the Chiefs.

Houston has been a long time member of the Chiefs, a cornerstone for the defense since they selected him in the third round of the 2011 draft out of Georgia. Last year, his absence during the regular season due to a hamstring injury created a noticeable slide in the pressure the poor Chiefs defense was able to apply to opposing quarterbacks. Despite his effectiveness, it was time for the Chiefs to move on for a number of reasons so Sunday’s cut was the right move.

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First, Houston is getting older. The trend during the Veach era in Kansas City has been to get guys that are young. Youth seems to be one of the more important items when Veach looks to sign or retain talent. Houston, while still a great pass rusher, was looking for another longer deal. If the goal is to stay young, then offering to extend or paying someone who is getting into his thirties just doesn’t make sense. The Chiefs have one of the youngest teams in the NFL and to ensure that the benefits of youth (speed, quickness, etc.) remain a cornerstone of the Chiefs, it is imperative that the moves reflect that commitment.

Houston also has a fairly significant injury history. In 2015, when Houston injured his ACL, he took a turn. His injury occurred 11 games into the season, and he never quite got back to where he was pre-ACL. You can’t fault him for that because an ACL injury is most definitely a serious and significant injury, but ultimately it comes down to production. If you are paying a player to be an elite pass rusher, then they must consistently be an elite pass rusher.

Houston has never been able to match the productivity of his younger days. His 2016 season began on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list and he only played 5 games. The following year still didn’t see him return to form. This past season was clearly productive, but now at 30, you can’t count on a person’s body being able to hold up that much longer with that significant an injury history.

Football is a business and the Chiefs need to make sure they are getting the most for what they pay. With Houston, the financial hit is just too hard to keep him around when there are concerns about his durability. Houston is at the end of his monster deal which he signed while the team was still under John Dorsey. The deal was a six-year, $101 million commitment.

Dorsey has never been known to be good with contracts or communication. He is, however, one of the best in evaluating talent and we can see that in some of the players the Chiefs have on the roster today. Those contractual mistakes have led to the Chiefs’ current cap problems with Eric Berry and Houston. Both signed their contracts coming off of career years and neither has matched that production since. Both have also had issues staying on the field.

With the impending contract extensions of Chris Jones, Tyreek Hill, and Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs need all the money they can get. Cutting Houston frees up money for the Chiefs to be able to lock in players long term and ensure success for the future.

While I will always appreciate Houston’s contribution to the Chiefs—a great leader, an incredible player, and a great guy off the field—I believe the Chiefs made the right move here. The focus is to free up money, get younger, and keep players that stay on the field. That focus means Houston just didn’t have a place here. I have no doubt he will sign a deal with a great team and do well, but that place isn’t Kansas City.

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