The tryout was a limited one, a single meaningless game at the end of the regular season for the Kansas City Chiefs. Blake Lynch made the most of it anyway.
One week before the NFL free agency was officially set to begin, the Chiefs made a minor move to bolster the defense and special teams by re-signing Blake Lynch to a deal for the 2025 campaign. The move brings Lynch back into the fold after a late-season signing to check out the journeyman linebacker last December.
Lynch didn't land with the Chiefs until shortly before New Year's Eve, but the Chiefs gave him 25 reps on defense in a Week 18 game against the Denver Broncos. The team rested nearly all of its starters that day, and the Broncos went on to win a lopsided 38-0 contest, but Lynch put up 6 total tackles, including one for a loss, while playing nearly 100 percent of snaps on special teams that Sunday afternoon. That was enough for the Chiefs.
The Chiefs added Blake Lynch after appreciating what they saw from him in a Week 18 tryout against Denver.
Teams often make late-season signings, as the Chiefs did with Lynch, in order to see if the player is worth a longer look the next year. Futures signings often work that way, at least in K.C., where late-season additions turn into futures deals a few weeks later, once the year is officially closed. Lynch is another player who fits that bill in 2025, along with wideout Tyquan Thornton and defensive lineman Siaki Ika.
While Lynch might have impressed in a single game in 2024, the truth is he still faces a long climb to stay with the Chiefs for the entire offseason (and beyond). He's already been employed by the Vikings, Seahawks, Raiders, Chargers, and Cardinals since entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Baylor in 2020.
To his credit, Lynch has played in 29 total games in his NFL career with 7 starts, all for Minnesota back in 2021. He had 35 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 passes deflected, and a forced fumble that year.
It's possible the Chiefs have a bit more playing time at linebacker going forward if they lose Nick Bolton to free agency and/or Jack Cochrane has complications coming back from an injury. Leo Chenal, Cam Jones, Shaun Bradley, and Drue Tranquill are the only other linebackers on the roster, but the Chiefs will undoubtedly add more players as the offseason progresses.