The legal clouds hanging over Kansas City Chiefs defensive backs coach Dave Merritt have lifted. A Kansas district court has officially dismissed the misdemeanor domestic battery charge filed against him in late April, and according to reporter Mike Garafolo, the National Football League has now closed its own investigation, with no discipline warranted.
Merritt had been charged on the eve of the 2026 NFL Draft. He was arrested by Overland Park police and briefly held in the Johnson County jail before being released.
With the conclusion of both the criminal case and the league's investigation, Merritt heads into training camp with his role intact and his focus presumably back on a Chiefs secondary that has undergone wholesale changes this offseason. The three most talented players in the secondary all left from a year ago—cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, safety Bryan Cook—and in their place are first-round corner Mansoor Delane, veteran safety Alohi Gilman, and a host of other new signings and draftees.
The charges against Merritt were shocking in the first place, considering he's been perhaps the most impactful positional coach on Andy Reid's staff. Merritt has been with the Chiefs since 2019 as a defensive backs coach, and he's an obvious choice to become a coordinator if the window ever opened in K.C.—or if he had the interest to pursue a professional move away from where his family is rooted. It's impossible to tell at this stage if the charges have stained that reputation, but the on-field body of work speaks for itself.
Merritt started in the NFL as a coaching assistant with the New York Jets in 2001, and went on to join the New York Giants in 2004. He would eventually win his first two Super Bowls on that staff, which is where he first crossed paths with Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. After a year with the Arizona Cardinals in 2018, he joined the Chiefs as Spagnuolo's leader in the secondary and has since added three more rings.
Add us as a preferred source on Google