Chris Harris and other free agent cornerbacks for the Chiefs

There are not a lot of Chiefs fans that would tell you that they do not want to see a significant investment in at least one lock down cornerback this offseason. The Chiefs played with fire last season and were lucky not to get burned when it mattered most (see here).

Chris Harris

And if Veach and Co. do invest heavily the position, that likely starts and ends with Denver Bronco free agent Chris Harris, Jr. By all accounts, Harris wants to be in Kansas City, and if that’s the truth, there is almost no reason to not sign him if you’re the Chiefs.

Almost, only because he’ll be 31 by the time the season starts and will still almost certainly demand a significant contract both in terms of years and dollars.

Still, Harris could be a game changer in the secondary for Kansas City that would allow Ward to be essentially CB2 (he played CB1 last year), and keep Mathieu in the slot or a draft pick. This may be best case scenario for the secondary.

Harris is probably looking at a three year deal with an option for a fourth that pays around $8-10m a year with around $18m guaranteed. If Veach can fit that in the budget – he should.

Bashaud Breeland

This may ultimately be a mid-tier option but would require the team to invest more than they did one season ago. Bottom line – Breeland has earned a multi-year, bigger contract than the 1 year, $2 million deal he signed with the Chiefs last year.

And he’s going to get it from someone. Whether or not it will be Kansas City is yet to be seen – but it makes sense on several levels for Veach to explore this option.

For starters, Breeland obviously gelled well with Spagnuolo and the overall defensive scheme and personnel. He got better as the season went on. And he seemed comfortable in the CB2 role he undertook the majority of the season. Penalty issues notwithstanding, Breeland was a nice addition for Kansas City and would be a nice compromise between a vet minimum and a Harris signing, in terms of the salary cap.

Expect Breeland to sign a 3 year, $16 million deal with $10m or so guaranteed. A nice raise, but not breaking the bank.