Believe it or not, the Chiefs were one of the most lavish spenders in free agency this year.
Kansas City spent a little more than $200 million in free agency this offseason, which ranked No. 7 among all NFL teams according to Over The Cap. This is despite only signing 13 players in the first few weeks of the 2024 league year.
Now, the total dollar amount might be high, but most of that is tied up in defensive tackle Chris Jones' five-year, $158.75 million contract. Besides Jones, the Chiefs' only other relatively large deal was signed by linebacker Drue Tranquill.
Here's the Chiefs stack up against the rest of the NFL in free agency spending:
2024 NFL free agency spending
| RANK | Team | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Titans | 307,152,500 |
| 2 | Panthers | 259,450,000 |
| 3 | Falcons | 244,062,500 |
| 4 | Giants | 225,100,000 |
| 5 | Patriots | 219,955,000 |
| 6 | Texans | 210,955,000 |
| 7 | Chiefs | 202,192,500 |
| 8 | Buccaneers | 189,640,000 |
| 9 | Colts | 186,340,000 |
| 10 | Washington | 176,611,000 |
| 11 | Raiders | 170,650,000 |
| 12 | Rams | 168,133,750 |
| 13 | Jaguars | 168,057,500 |
| 14 | Vikings | 157,730,000 |
| 15 | Cardinals | 147,295,000 |
| 16 | Eagles | 145,562,500 |
| 17 | Bears | 144,495,000 |
| 18 | Packers | 141,722,500 |
| 19 | Ravens | 139,330,000 |
| 20 | Seahawks | 130,945,000 |
| 21 | Dolphins | 109,632,500 |
| 22 | Bills | 95,145,000 |
| 23 | Steelers | 85,097,500 |
| 24 | Lions | 84,050,000 |
| 25 | Bengals | 73,617,500 |
| 26 | 49ers | 72,617,500 |
| 27 | Jets | 72,375,000 |
| 28 | Broncos | 67,625,000 |
| 29 | Browns | 67,302,500 |
| 30 | Chargers | 44,547,500 |
| 31 | Saints | 29,795,000 |
| 32 | Cowboys | 11,130,000 |
Chiefs 2024 salary cap
Except for the Jones' extension, the Chiefs didn't spend too much money in free agency. That left KC with around $19.3 million in salary cap space for 2024, according to OTC.
Jones provided the biggest cap hit to the Chiefs this year with a whopping $26.9 million against the 2024 salary cap. The only player with a greater cap hit is quarterback Patrick Mahomes. This is likely why the Chiefs couldn't afford to keep cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and instead traded him to the Titans. Tennessee then handed Sneed the richest contract for his position that pays him $19.8 million annually — more than the Chiefs have in cap space.
Chiefs 2024 free agency moves
Again, the Chiefs mostly re-signed their own players as they pursue a third consecutive Super Bowl — led by Jones. Other 2023 stalwarts like Mike Danna, Due Tranquill and Clyde Edwards-Helaire were also re-signed.
The biggest offseason addition was quarterback Carson Wentz ... just kidding, it was wide receiver Marquise Brown, who signed a low-risk, high-record one-year, $7 million deal to become a top-3 pass-catching option for Mahomes.
| Position | Name | Transaction Type | Terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| IDL | Chris Jones | Re-signed | 5 years, $158.75 million |
| EDGE | Mike Danna | Re-signed | 3 years, $24 million |
| LB | Drue Tranquill | Re-signed | 3 years, $19 million |
| WR | Marquise Brown | Signed | 1 year, $7 million |
| QB | Carson Wentz | Signed | 1 year, $3.325 million |
| IDL | Tershawn Wharton | Re-signed | 1 year, $2.742 million |
| IDL | Derrick Nnadi | Re-signed | 1 year, $2 million |
| RB | Clyde Edwards-Helaire | Re-signed | 1 year, $1.7 million |
| LS | James Winchester | Re-signed | 1 year, $1.377 million |
| S | Deon Bush | Re-signed | 1 year, $1.377 million |
| TE | Irv Smith Jr. | Signed | 1 year, $1.292 million |
| IDL | Isaiah Buggs | Re-signed | 1 year, $1.292 million |
| IDL | Mike Pennel | Re-signed | 1 year, $1.21 million |
| IDL | Matt Dickerson | Re-signed | 1 year, $1.125 million |