KC Chiefs should consider bringing back Mitch Morse

Two years ago, the Buffalo Bills reset the market for interior offensive linemen when they gave Mitch Morse the healthiest (read: most expensive) contract ever given to a center. This spring, they might just decide to part ways with him.

The former Kansas City Chiefs lineman entered the market in 2019 as a bright young center coming off a rookie deal and landed a four-year averaging over $11 million annually. The Bills were attempting to turn a corner offensive (and competitively) and surrounding new quarterback Josh Allen with an upgraded line was of primary importance. Morse was the new cornerstone, an immediate upgrade along the offensive front who would serve as captain and communicator.

The Bills plan to build toward contention has worked out quite well. Until they ran into the Chiefs this postseason, they were on an impressive late season run that brought them all the way to the Divisional Round. Josh Allen looked like a. new man under center this season, and now the Bills’ challenge is figuring out how to join the NFL’s elite.

Unfortunately, like most contenders, the Bills are also trying to figure out how to remain competitive while dealing with the financial constraints that comes with paying star players. And given the financial outlook in 2021, the Bills are going to have to make some tough decisions, one that could lead to free agency once again for Morse.

The Bills could decide to cut center Mitch Morse this offseason in an effort to save some money.

If that sounds silly that the Bills could release Morse, it should on the surface. But each team has to make tough calls on good players from time to times, and the Bills have a sort of conundrum with Morse at present.

Heading into next season, Morse has the fourth-highest cap hit for the Bills, which would be fine, but the rest of the line is also getting expensive. Guard/center Jon Feliciano is going to be a free agent, as is Darryl Williams, and it makes sense for the Bills to explore bringing both back.

In addition, there are health concerns around Morse given that he suffered his fifth documented concussion earlier this year. He returned after missing a couple games in the season’s mid-section to start every game from Week 12 on, but the team can’t pretend it’s not a concern going forward.

Beyond that, the Bills also had an odd episode in mid-November to reflect back on when Morse was a healthy scratch for the team. He was active and practicing, having just returned from the concussion protocol, yet he didn’t play against the Arizona Cardinals in a Week 10 loss. It would make sense that the Bills were just wanting to rest him before the bye in Week 11, but then why leave him active instead of inactive?

After the game, head coach Sean McDermott didn’t even use his health concerns as a reason. Instead, he called it “strictly a football decision.” Following the game, McDermott explained to reporters what he meant.

"“He was healthy, coach’s decision right there. We know Mitch is a good player and just felt like for that week, meaning last week, we felt like we had at least some momentum with the group we had had in when Mitch went down and wanted to take a look at it one more week there.”"

Coming out of the bye week, he wouldn’t even commit to Morse, who was now fully healthy, as a starter in Week 12, saying “We’ll see.” From that point, Morse did return and stayed in at center for the rest of the year. But the incident happened and it’s impossible to gloss over the fact that the Bills considered life without Morse at midseason, just two years into his expensive deal.

If the Bills release Morse this offseason, they’re on the hook for $5.5 million in dead cap space if designated as a post-June 1 cut. However, they would save $7.5 million in ’21 and $8 million in ’22, per Over the Cap.

A reunion with the Chiefs?

Speaking of checking out other options at center, the Kansas City Chiefs were doing just that at midseason themselves. The Chiefs have certainly felt the impact of Morse’s exit along the line, even as they’ve made the leap to Super Bowl champs in that same span, and a potential reunion could be an exciting proposition for both sides.

Over the last two seasons, Austin Reiter has done an admirable job as the Chiefs starting center, especially considering that he was a preseason waiver claim back in 2018 by general manager Brett Veach. But there’s been a marked difference in play from Morse to Reiter, as expected, and earlier this year, the Chiefs tried out Daniel Kilgore—against the Bills, as a matter of fact—in an apparent attempt to shake things up. Ultimately the Chiefs went back to Reiter for the rest of the season.

This offseason, however, the offensive line is expected to garner serious attention as the Chiefs try to answer several questions about their front five. From injury concerns going forward for Mitchell Schwartz and Eric Fisher to a need for upgrades all around, no job should be considered safe for the Chiefs line. That certainly includes Reiter at center, which brings potential replacements into view.

What about a reunion with Morse? The Chiefs are already well-acquainted with him, and he’d be an instant fit back with his coaching staff and former teammates. He’s also still playing at a high level for a team that surged into the postseason. For those concerned about his health, Morse has started 30 games in the last two seasons in Buffalo. While the concussions are concerning, Morse isn’t likely to command another 4-year, $44M deal on the open market at this stage.

That said, if Morse passes a physical and is still hungry to play long-term, the Chiefs would likely have a lot of competitors for Morse’s services going forward. He’s never made a Pro Bowl but he’s known as an above average performer for two contending teams and he’s still only 28 years old. That means time and money in any new deal—unless the Chiefs own some decisive edge thanks to history and recent team success.

The Bills might scoff at the idea of losing Morse. It might not be in the cards at all. However, there’s enough evidence to at least consider the possibility, and a quick scan of Bills Mafia on social media shows that many fans are already debating the idea. If so, the Chiefs would do well to at least check in on their old friend and see whether a reunion could be in the cards.