Chiefs must keep and restructure Sammy Watkins’ contract

Although Sammy Watkins has been inconsistent in the regular season, he’s been one of the team’s best players in the playoffs.

The Kansas City Chiefs have had a lot of success in the playoffs the last two years, having reached the AFC Championship last year and made the Super Bowl this season. Many will be quick to credit players like Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce and Damien Williams on offense—and rightfully so.

However, there is one name that should be very high on the list. That name is Sammy Watkins.

Watkins was instrumental in the 35-24 AFC Championship win over the Tennessee Titans, coming away with 7 catches for 114 yards and a 60-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter to help punch the team’s Super Bowl ticket.

Watkins has quietly been Kansas City’s best pass-catcher in the four playoff games the last two years with 19 passes for 366 yards and 1 touchdown. He’s led the team in receptions, yards and even targets with 28 through those four games.

In 2018 and 2019 combined, Watkins missed eight games total due to injury while being heavily limited in three other games. Watkins’ availability has been one of his biggest flaws since joining the Chiefs. Some would argue his inconsistency on the gridiron would be his biggest flaw.

In Week 1 of the 2019 season, Watkins had a field day against Jacksonville’s defense, pulling in 9 catches for 198 yards and 3 touchdowns, and he led the league in yards and touchdowns among all receivers to open up the season. His 3 touchdowns from that game equated his 2018 total. Outside of Week 1, Watkins never caught another touchdown pass nor had more than 64 receiving yards in a game during the regular season.

In the last two years, Watkins has been up and down in the regular season, but has been dominant in the postseason. Here is where things get tough: Watkins is set to be the highest paid wide receiver in 2020.

According to Spotrac, the Chiefs currently have the highest payroll at wide receiver for 2020. The Chiefs are set to pay $40,881,905 to five wide receivers. The Houston Texans come in second with almost $34 million for seven wide receivers. In addition to Watkins being the highest paid wide receiver with $21 million for 2020, Hill is fourth on the same list with $17,650,000, per Over The Cap.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported earlier this month that the Chiefs have every intention on making Mahomes the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. Defensive tackle Chris Jones is also a player the Chiefs want to keep due to the defensive resurgence and he is scheduled for a big payday. You also have to consider free agents, such as LeSean McCoy, Demarcus Robinson, Anthony Sherman, Stefen Wisniewski, Mike Pennel and Kendall Fuller. All or most of them are likely to get solid contracts.

If Watkins leaves, fans will say that it won’t hurt the team because the offense still has Hill and Mecole Hardman. But it can only help the offense if the team restructures Watkins’ contract and gives him a smaller role where he can contribute and have less of a chance of getting injured. At that point, you have great depth, giving Mahomes plenty of viable options. It is also worth noting that if Watkins leaves, he may not find the same kind of success, team wise and individually, elsewhere. He has benefitted from playing under Andy Reid’s offense.

This is a good problem for general manager Brett Veach to have. Teams that reach the Super Bowl or consistently make it far in the playoffs have these kinds of problems that they must work around. Now, the Chiefs find themselves as one of those teams that has these “good problems to have.”