The Los Angeles Rams found a way to keep one of their top defensive free agents off the market shortly before a new league year was going to open up the bidding. Their choice to sign safety Kam Curl to a lucrative new deal not only bolsters their own secondary, but it also alters the board for the Kansas City Chiefs at a pivotal moment.
NFL reporter Mike Garafolo reported the news of Curl's new three-year extension worth up to $39 million on Friday morning. As the Chiefs survey their own list of pending free agents, including safety Bryan Cook, Curl's deal has multiple layers of impact for K.C.'s approach.
Cook, a 27-year-old safety who enjoyed a breakout season in a contract year for Kansas City, profiles as one of the best safeties available in this year's free agent class. Curl's deal matches last year's generous contracts handed out by the Denver Broncos to Talanoa Hufanga and the Houston Texans to Jalen Pitre. With his new deal, Curl is now tied with the aforementioned as the 14th highest-paid safeties per average annual salary in the NFL.
Kam Curl's new deal changes things in multiple ways for the Chiefs before free agency begins.
For Cook, the chance to eclipse those numbers likely puts him out of reach for the Chiefs, who simply have too many roster needs to address with limited cap space. Yes, the Chiefs were able to free up significant room with the release of Jawaan Taylor, the restructure of Patrick Mahomes' contract, and the trade of Trent McDuffie (who will be playing next to Curl for the next few seasons, by the way). But they began the offseason needing to create $60M just to get under the cap limit.
Cook was already projected to make more than what Curl received, if Spotrac's market value of $14.2M annually is accurate. It's possible he has Kyle Duggar's $14.5M annual average in his sights or Cam Bynum at $15M. If Cook wants to be top 10, he'll have to get $15.2M on average to leap Jevon Holland of the New York Giants.
For the Chiefs, losing Cook was already a major loss considering how well he responded to Justin Reid's departure. The Chiefs went without a veteran safety to anchor the secondary for the first time in six seasons (following the tenures of Tyrann Mathieu and Reid), and Cook proved capable of handling a greater range while maintaining his reputation as a strong tackler and run stopper.
What makes losing Cook even worse is that the depth is uninspired behind Cook. Jaden Hicks still hasn't been trusted with the starting role envisioned for him when drafted two years ago. Chamarri Conner is a solid player within his limits, but for some reason, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo tasks him with responsibilities beyond that. Mike Edwards and Deon Bush are aging vets who are likely gone in free agency.
If the Chiefs were looking at free agency for an answer, however, Curl is now off the table. They're not without options, such as Alohi Gilman or Donovan Wilson or Jaquan Brisker, but it's always disappointing when the choices start to disappear before the shopping spree even begins. Cook is going to get paid. Curl already has. The need is significant at safety for the Chiefs.