The Kansas City Chiefs made a couple of minor moves on Saturday to further shore up the plans for roster construction ahead of what should be a very busy week of free agency. They still have a number of calls to make regarding their own free agents, but at least two are out of the way now.
On Saturday, the Chiefs officially agreed to terms to bring back James Winchester for another season with the team. The Chiefs also decided against tendering an offer to restricted free agent offensive lineman Mike Caliendo.
A bit about Winchester
A one-year, $1.75 million deal is enough to keep Winchester around for a 12th NFL season. He's now the longest-tenured Chiefs player on the roster, and he'll remain that way until the moment Travis Kelce decides whether or not he's returning to the team for another season. Winchester has played in 206 games with the Chiefs between the regular season and playoffs.
Winchester's new deal makes him the highest-paid long snapper in the game. Given Harrison Butker's standing as the most expensive kicker in the NFL, the Chiefs' commitment to continuity on special teams is unrivaled.
What's important to understand about Caliendo
The bigger news of the day belongs to Caliendo. The former Western Michigan product signed with the Chiefs as a rookie free agent, and he deserves credit for not only claiming an active roster spot but climbing the depth chart to remain a pivotal piece along the offensive front.
Caliendo has played in 42 games and started 7 during the regular season for K.C., with another 3 postseason starts in 7 appearances. That's significant playing time, as Chiefs Kingdom has watched Caliendo serve as an important depth piece and spot starter time and again. After watching Nick Allegretti leave (who followed Andrew Wylie), it was Caliendo who stepped into the super-sub role.
This spring, however, Caliendo was going to cost the Chiefs a rather disproportionate amount for the level of impact he provides. With a $3.5 million tender amount, the Chiefs would have been locked in for quite a bit of money in a cash-strapped season, so it's no surprise to see them moving on.
Caliendo now gets a chance to test the market as an unrestricted FA, which opens the door for a potential return at market rate—whatever that might show itself to be. That said, the Chiefs drafted interior linemen Hunter Nourzad out of Penn State and C.J. Hanson out of Holy Cross two years ago and neither player has been given any real opportunity to shine. Expect the Chiefs to let the kids compete for a larger interior reserve role as Caliendo finds a new place to call home.