KC Chiefs are dead last in offseason waiver wire order
By Matt Conner
It’s to be expected, but it’s now official that the Kansas City Chiefs are last in the NFL waiver wire order.
At this point, it’s the cost of doing business. When a team wins the Super Bowl, the National Football League does its best to structure the immediate future with hurdles in the way of that same team. It’s all in the name of parity. Apologies to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Teams that finish first are given the last picks in any round in the annual first-year player draft. And the same is true for the waiver order used by the league for the next six months.
Remember, teams are now very active at this point cutting and signing players, and one team’s trash is often another team’s treasure. Remember that we’re celebrating Andrew Wylie today but he joined the Chiefs as a journeyman lineman a few years ago—and that’s just one example.
How the NFL waiver wire works
As teams release players in order to create room on the expanded offseason rosters—up to 90 players, by the way—they also need to think about the waiver wire. That’s because teams cannot just pick up and set down any player they want at any time without a process to go through first—at least with younger or inexperienced players.
The official rules are as follows: if a player has less than four seasons of experience in the NFL (including accrued time), then they are subject to waivers. That means that every single team in the NFL gets a chance to snag them following their release and they must report to that new team if they want to play in the league.
If a player has hit the four-year mark of accrued seasons in the league, he is free to sign with any team as an instant free agent. In order for a player who has less experience than that to enjoy the same freedom, he must pass through waivers before being declared a free agent.
The NFL waiver wire order for 2023
The official waiver wire order has been set after Super Bowl LVII in which the Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles, giving us the final two teams in the process. Here’s the official order:
- Chicago Bears
- Houston Texans
- Arizona Cardinals
- Indianapolis Colts
- Denver Broncos
- Los Angeles Rams
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Atlanta Falcons
- Carolina Panthers
- New Orleans Saints
- Tennessee Titans
- Cleveland Browns
- New York Jets
- New England Patriots
- Green Bay Packers
- Washington Commanders
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Detroit Lions
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Seattle Seahawks
- Miami Dolphins
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Baltimore Ravens
- Minnesota Vikings
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- New York Giants
- Dallas Cowboys
- Buffalo Bills
- Cincinnati Bengals
- San Francisco 49ers
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Kansas City Chiefs
Next. Ranking the top 5 draft classes in Chiefs history. dark