The offseason is almost here for the Kansas City Chiefs, which means the full attention of the team will turn to face the dozens of significant roster decisions that Brett Veach and his staff must make tif they want to chase another Super Bowl victory for Andy Reid and company.
NFL free agency is a major part of the equation for the Chiefs' front office as they must decide what to do with dozens of players. This time of year can be quite difficult for several reasons, including the fact that these are emotional decisions with big impacts on very real players—including fan favorites—and yet there's a reason that the phrase "the NFL is a business" exists.
For Veach, free agency is a balance between spending now for the sake of maintaining a championship-caliber roster and saving for future needs—including in-season acquisitions for the 2025 campaign. After all, there are various points on the league's calendar in which a team can go shopping, so cashing in during the month of March is not the smartest thing to do.
The Chiefs have made savvy free-agent decisions aplenty in recent years, which is partially why they've been so successful. That said, Veach has also missed on more than one occasion. This is what makes this time of year so interesting to see what will happen.
Last year, the Chiefs faced the potential losses of defensive lineman Chris Jones and cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and decided to trade the latter and keep the former. Nick Bolton and Trey Smith are this year's biggest potential free agent prizes, so fans will be watching and waiting for any news of potential extensions there.
There's plenty to analyze in the weeks to come, but let's at least get a look at the full list of free agent decisions facing the Chiefs this offseason.
Chiefs unrestricted free agents (UFA) for 2025
Player Name | Position |
---|---|
Nick Bolton | Linebacker |
Marquise Brown | Wide receiver |
Jody Fortson | Tight end |
Mecole Hardman | Wide receiver |
DeAndre Hopkins | Wide Receiver |
D.J. Humphries | Offensive tackle |
Kareem Hunt | Running back |
Derrick Nnadi | Defensive lineman |
Charles Omenihu | Defensive lineman |
Mike Pennel | Defensive lineman |
Samaje Perine | Running back |
Justin Reid | Safety |
Trey Smith | Offensive lineman |
JuJu Smith-Schuster | Wide receiver |
Marlon Tuipulotu | Defensive lineman |
Joshua Uche | Defensive end |
Justin Watson | Wide receiver |
Carson Wentz | Quarterback |
Turk Wharton | Defensive lineman |
James Winchester | Long snapper |
Chiefs restricted free agents (RFA) for 2025
Player Name | Position |
---|---|
Jack Cochrane | Linebacker |
Peyton Hendershot | Tight end |
Malik Herring | Defensive lineman |
Nazeeh Johnson | Defensive back |
Keith Taylor | Cornerback |
Chiefs exclusive rights free agents (ERFA) for 2025
Player Name | Position |
---|---|
Matt Araiza | Punter |
Mike Caliendo | Offensive lineman |
Spencer Shrader | Kicker |