Chiefs Pursued Charvarius Ward Reunion
Establishing a clear M.O. during the Andy Reid-Steve Spagnuolo years, the Chiefs have preferred to make their key cornerbacks one-contract players. A recent reminder of this strategy emerged last year, when the team traded L’Jarius Sneed.
After a Super Bowl LIX effort that saw the Eagles pick on Sneed replacement Jaylen Watson, the Chiefs showed more interest in making a notable cornerback payment. Kansas City signed Kristian Fulton to a two-year, $20MM deal. The ex-Titans and Chargers defender will be positioned to play opposite Trent McDuffie next season, but his signing came after the Chiefs pursued a reunion with one of the CBs they let walk in the past.
The three-time reigning AFC champions were in the Charvarius Ward market, according to SI.com’s Albert Breer. Ward, whom Kansas City turned from UDFA to upper-echelon starter after acquiring him via trade from the Cowboys, ended up signing with the Colts. Indianapolis deviated from its general blueprint as well, paying both Ward and Camryn Bynum on Day 1 of the legal tampering period. Chris Ballard’s team gave Ward a three-year, $54MM deal; it appears the Chiefs helped push that market to its endpoint.
Acquired straight up in a late-summer trade for guard Parker Ehinger in 2018, Ward became a primary Chiefs starter ahead of their Super Bowl LIV-winning 2019 season. Ward started three full seasons with the Chiefs, who moved on from the likes of Marcus Peters, Steven Nelson and Kendall Fuller during that time period. When it came time to pay Ward in 2022, Kansas City passed and let San Francisco hand out a three-year, $40.5MM deal. The Chiefs were able to get by without Ward, drafting McDuffie and turning to Sneed as an every-down player, but Ward also rewarded the 49ers.
When the Chiefs faced the Niners to wrap the 2023 season, Ward had received second-team All-Pro honors. He operated as a three-year starter in San Francisco, and while coverage metrics did not view the soon-to-be 29-year-old’s form on the level of his 2022 and ’23 campaigns, the boundary defender generated a big market. Receiving $27MM guaranteed at signing, Ward joined Byron Murphy, Carlton Davis and Paulson Adebo in signing an $18MM-per-year deal. Ward, Murphy, Davis and D.J. Reed ($16MM AAV) established a new market for third-contract CBs.
Ward will join Kenny Moore in Indianapolis, while Kansas City must now determine whether to break from its general Reid-years plan and give McDuffie a monster extension. The decorated cover man is now extension-eligible, but once the Chiefs pick up his fifth-year option, the 2022 first-rounder will be under contract through 2026. That will give the team time, though the once-stagnant CB market has risen over the past several months. McDuffie will be quite expensive to extend, and it will be interesting to see if the Chiefs pay their top Reid-era corner the new going rate.
Elsewhere on the Chiefs’ roster, they did bring in two of Ward’s recent 49ers teammates. Kansas City’s contract for ex-Christian McCaffrey backup Elijah Mitchell checks in at one year and $2.5MM in base value ($1.35 guaranteed), NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets. This came after Jaylon Moore signed to be the team’s new left tackle.
Coming off a full-season absence, the injury-prone RB still scored a $1.1MM base salary guarantee from the Chiefs, via KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. The Chiefs, however, re-signed Kareem Hunt after agreeing to terms with Mitchell. These two are poised to back up Isiah Pacheco, who is not expected to be considered for an extension until he can show pre-injury form after suffering a broken leg last September.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/19/25
Today’s minor moves:
Detroit Lions
- Re-signed: DE Al-Quadin Muhammad
Kansas City Chiefs
- Re-signed: DT Marlon Tuipulotu
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: DT Esezi Otomewo
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: CB Shemar Jean-Charles
Tennessee Titans
- Re-signed: RB Julius Chestnut
Al-Quadin Muhammad is inking a one-year deal to return to Detroit, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The defensive lineman got into nine games (two starts) for the Lions last season, collecting 11 tackles and three sacks while appearing in about 40 percent of his team’s defensive snaps.
Muhammad didn’t get into a game during the 2023 campaign. He spent the first part of the season on the Colts practice squad, and he was later suspended for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs. Prior to his lost 2023 season, the lineman got into games with the Saints, Colts, and Bears, collecting 12 sacks across six NFL seasons.
AFC Contract Details: Garrett, Stingley, Broncos, Bills, Jaguars, Titans, Chargers
Beginning with two record-setting deals, here are the latest contract details from the AFC:
- Myles Garrett, DE (Browns). Four years, $160MM. Garrett’s $88.8MM full guarantee consists of a $21.54MM signing bonus, fully guaranteed base salaries in 2025 and ’26 and a fully guaranteed 2026 option bonus. Almost all of Garrett’s 2027 compensation is guaranteed as well, with Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio noting a $39.34MM option bonus shifts to a full guarantee no later than Day 3 of the 2026 league year. Garrett’s $21.41MM 2028 option bonus is guaranteed for injury and will shift to a full guarantee on Day 3 of the 2027 league year. Only $800K of Garrett’s $38MM 2029 base salary will be guaranteed a year out, however; Garrett’s $38MM 2030 base is nonguaranteed. The option bonuses and four void years will help keep Garrett’s cap numbers under $30MM until 2028.
- Derek Stingley Jr., CB (Texans). Three years, $90MM. Of Stingley’s eye-popping $89MM guarantee, only $48MM is locked in at signing, Florio adds. Early protections, as in the Garrett contract, are included here as well. After fully guaranteed base salaries in 2025 and ’26, Stingley will see his $20MM 2027 base salary shift from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee in March 2026. That same structure is in place for 2027, with a $21MM salary moving from guaranteed for injury to fully guaranteed by March 2027. Stingley’s 2029 base is nonguaranteed.
- D.J. Jones, DT (Broncos). Three years, $39MM. Jones fetched an impressive second Broncos contract. Before the team reunited him with 49ers teammates Dre Greenlaw and Talanoa Hufanga, Jones scored a $26MM full guarantee, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. Two void years are in this Denver deal.
- Dre Greenlaw, LB (Broncos): Three years, $31.5MM. This base value checks in a touch south of the initial reports as well. Of that sum, $11.5MM is fully guaranteed, per Spotrac. Another $2MM locks in on Day 5 of the 2026 league year, via OverTheCap, but Greenlaw’s injury trouble looks to have affected him on the market after all. A $3MM incentive package is present, and Denver can move on from the deal for less than $5MM in 2026 dead money.
- Josh Palmer, WR (Bills). Three years, $29MM. This is south of the $36MM number initially reported. TD and yardage incentives cover $6MM, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan tweets. The ex-Charger will see $15MM fully guaranteed. Palmer’s 2025 salary is locked in, and $4.84MM of his $9.66MM 2026 base salary is as well. Another $3MM will convert from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee on Day 5 of the ’26 league year, per OverTheCap.
- Cody Barton, LB (Titans). Three years, $21MM. The nomadic defender will see $13.3MM fully guaranteed, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. Both Barton’s 2025 and ’26 salaries are guaranteed, with Wilson adding $1.5MM of his 2027 base is as well.
- Robert Hainsey, C (Jaguars). Three years, $21MM. Hainsey will receive $10MM fully guaranteed, Wilson tweets. Of Hainsey’s $6.25MM 2026 base salary, $3MM is guaranteed at signing. The rest locks in if Hainsey is still a Jaguar by Day 5 of the 2026 league year.
- Eric Murray, S (Jaguars). Three years, $19.5MM. This massive Murray raise from his Texans deals brings $10MM fully guaranteed, per OverTheCap. Murray will see $3.5MM of his 2026 base salary locked in, while Wilson adds the rest becomes guaranteed on Day 5 of the ’26 league year.
- Marquise Brown, WR (Chiefs). One year, $6.85MM. This is down from the “up to” $11MM report, with Wilson indicating $6.5MM is guaranteed. After a season-marring injury, Brown takes a slight pay cut (after a $7MM 2024 deal).
- Benjamin St-Juste, CB (Chargers). One year, $2.5MM. The Chargers are guaranteeing St-Juste $1MM, Wilson adds. This profiles as a flier on a four-year Washington regular, whose $1.5MM base salary is nonguaranteed.
Justin Reid Chose Saints Over Titans, Eagles, Chiefs
The Saints won a multi-team battle for Justin Reid last week, with the Eagles and the Titans falling short in their bid to sign the veteran safety, per Bleacher Report’s James Palmer.
The Eagles “weren’t close” to the $10.5M APY that Reid received from the Saints, per Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer, suggesting that he was willing to take less money to join the reigning Super Bowl champions.
Reid confirmed those teams’ interest in his introductory press conference, adding that the Chiefs explored a reunion with their longtime safety as well. He added that there is “no animosity” between him and the Chiefs, but signing with the Saints “made too much sense” for the Louisiana native.
He went to college across the country at Stanford, but falling to the Texans in the 2018 draft allowed Reid to stay somewhat close to home in Houston. His three years in Kansas City pulled him farther away from Louisiana, but he will now get to play for his childhood team.
“Every kid in Louisiana dreams about playing for the Saints,” said Reid. He will reunite with fellow Louisiana native Tyrann Mathieu in New Orleans. Reid played with Mathieu in Houston in 2018 and later replaced him in Kansas City in 2022.
His new contract in New Orleans is worth $31.5MM over three years, the same as his last deal with the Chiefs. He is receiving $2MM more in guaranteed money, though his APY has not increased with salary cap inflation.
WR JuJu Smith-Schuster Re-Signs With Chiefs
With some potential question marks in the receiving corps for 2025, the Chiefs seem to have opted to keep some familiar faces in the room for Patrick Mahomes to throw to. To that end, Kansas City will re-sign veteran wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster for the 2025 season, per Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports. 
Since having a resurgent, Super Bowl-winning season in 2022 with the Chiefs, Smith-Schuster has struggled to make an impact in the past two seasons. Smith-Schuster’s rebound season came after he only played five games in his final year with Pittsburgh and saw him record his second-highest career receiving yards total (933), though he only registered three touchdowns.
Following his big year with Mahomes, Smith-Schuster cashed in, signing a three-year, $33MM deal with the Patriots. Unfortunately, Smith-Schuster’s rebounded success didn’t carry over in New England, as he only accumulated 260 receiving yards and one touchdown in 11 games. The team released him after only one season.
It didn’t take too long for the Chiefs to pick up their old receiver for a second stint with the team, joining free agent addition Marquise Brown and rookie first-round pick Xavier Worthy as new additions in the wake of some Rashee Rice uncertainty. Despite injuries to both Brown and Rice, Smith-Schuster was unable to take advantage of more playing time, only logging 231 yards and two touchdowns on the season.
More opportunities for targets could certainly be on the way for Smith-Schuster in 2025, though. The Chiefs have already seen DeAndre Hopkins depart for Baltimore, and Mecole Hardman‘s contract with the team expired, as well. With those two gone, Smith-Schuster presumably slots in as WR4 behind Rice, Worthy, and Brown.
The aforementioned Rice uncertainty could open up even more opportunities for Smith-Schuster. While Rice is recovering from a season-ending injury, the uncertainty actually comes from two separate legal incidents from the last offseason that could see suspensions levied on Rice. First, Rice was involved in a major accident that he was allegedly responsible for before leaving the scene, and second, Rice was under investigation for an alleged assault incident. The team was reportedly bracing for a suspension for Rice before it was made known that, if a suspension was coming, it wouldn’t occur in 2024. That could mean that a suspension is still imminent for the 2025 season, though.
The team also received a second scare when Worthy was arrested on a charge of assault against a family or household member by impeding their breathing or circulation. Luckily for Kansas City, Worthy was not charged after the case was declined following discussions with multiple witnesses and Worthy’s attorneys. The case was closed, and Worthy has seemingly avoided any punishment for the time being.
Still, amidst the legal troubles of their two top wide receivers, the Chiefs opted to re-sign Brown, giving him another chance to make an impact in Kansas City after missing all but two games recovering from shoulder surgery in 2024. Smith-Schuster, too, will return for the Chiefs in 2025 as the team pursues its third Super Bowl victory in four years and its fourth appearance in as many years in the big game.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/14/25
As free agency continues, restricted and exclusive rights free agent tender decisions are being uncovered around the league:
RFAs
Nontendered:
- Chiefs: CB Keith Taylor
- Texans: T Zachary Thomas
Chiefs To Sign QB Bailey Zappe
The Chiefs are signing quarterback Bailey Zappe to a one-year deal, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Adding Zappe is Kansas City’s second move at quarterback this week; they also signed Gardner Minshew to a one-year deal. That likely means that Carson Wentz will be looking for a new gig in 2025 after backing up Patrick Mahomes in 2024.
Zappe’s signing is technically a reunion, as he spent the first few months of the season on the Chiefs’ practice squad. He didn’t appear in any games in red and gold before he was signed by the Browns after Deshaun Watson‘s season-ending Achilles injury.
Zappe became the QB3 in Cleveland behind Jameis Winston and Dorian Thompson-Robinson. He only appeared one game: a rough Week 18 start against the Ravens. That loss secured the No. 2 overall pick for the Browns in April’s draft.
Zappe will likely take up a similar role in Kansas City behind Mahomes and Minshew. Though he holds the distinction of being Bill Belichick‘s last quarterback in the NFL, it seems Zappe’s starting days are behind him. Joining the Chiefs will give him a shot at a Super Bowl, though, and potentially help him develop and earn a QB2 job in the future.
Chiefs, DL Jerry Tillery Agree To Deal
The Chiefs have lost Tershawn Wharton in the early stages of free agency, but they have quickly lined up a depth addition which will help replace him. Jerry Tillery has agreed to head to Kansas City on a one-year deal, Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reports.
Tillery started 11 games for the Vikings last year, lining up primarily along the interior of the defensive line with some snaps on the edge. He had one of the least productive seasons of his career and finished with 28 total tackles, zero sacks, and one tackle for loss.
Tillery was a 2019 first-round pick who began his career in the AFC West with the Chargers. He carved out a starting role in his second season and amassed 9.5 sacks, and 12 tackles for loss in 29 starts across his first three years in the NFL. Tillery’s production didn’t match his high snap counts, so the Chargers declined his fifth-year option after the 2021 season.
A slow start in 2022 led to Tillery’s release after seven games. He was claimed off waivers by the Raiders and appeared in the last eight games of their season with four starts. He re-signed in Las Vegas in 2023 before taking a one-year, $2.75MM contract with the Vikings in 2024.
Tiller will provided much-needed defensive line depth in Kansas City. In addition to losing Wharton, the Chiefs had three other defensive linemen hit free agency this week in Mike Pennel, Derrick Nnadi, and Marlon Tuipulotu. The team has yet to re-sign any and is currently only returning Chris Jones from last year’s unit.
Chiefs To Re-Sign Kareem Hunt
Kareem Hunt returned to the Chiefs last season, and his second Kansas City run will continue into 2025. The former rushing champion is re-signing on a one-year deal, as first reported by Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz. 
This pact has a base value of $1.5MM, Schultz adds. Incentives can add another $1MM to Hunt’s earnings. After a five-year run with the Browns, the 2017 Offensive Rookie of the Year came back to Kansas City and handled a notable offensive workload. He will remain part of the team’s backfield plans for at least one more campaign.
Isiah Pacheco was expected to handle a heavy workload in 2024, but he was limited to seven games due to a broken fibula. His absence helped open the door for Hunt signing and then receiving 200 carries on the year; he turned that opportunity into 728 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. The 29-year-old added 176 yards in the passing game, then scored a pair of touchdowns in the playoffs.
Before the start of free agency, it became clear the Chiefs would be interested in adding a veteran running back this spring. That plan resulted in a one-year agreement with Elijah Mitchell, who missed all of last season. The former 49er nevertheless figures to have a role of some kind with Kansas City. Pacheco, meanwhile, is entering the final year of his rookie contract.
The Chiefs could also look to the draft to add a long-term option at the position, something which would make sense since all three of their current top backs are pending 2026 free agents. Hunt – who saw his yards per carry average rebound slightly to 3.6 after it dropped at the end of his Browns tenure – will nevertheless compete for playing time in 2025. Regardless of how Kansas City’s backfield shakes out, the Toledo product figures to have a notable role based on the trust he has received from the organization.
Hunt made a mid-season return to the Browns in 2023 after Nick Chubb‘s season-ending knee injury. The latter is a free agent, and his departure (which would not come as a surprise at this point) would leave Cleveland in need of at least one notable addition. Today’s news confirms another new Hunt agreement will not be possible, though.
NFL Announces 2025 Compensatory Picks
MARCH 14: In an unusual step, the NFL has awarded the Saints a seventh-round compensatory pick and stripped one from the Dolphins. The Saints’ pick appears to check in in front of the Browns and Chargers’ Nos. 254 and 255 slots, as NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero notes Cleveland and Los Angeles’ last 2025 picks will slide down one spot. The Dolphins will retain their other seventh-round comp pick, however.
MARCH 11: The NFL has awarded compensatory draft picks for teams in the 2025 draft. Based on an add/subtract formula that covers the 2024 free agency period, comp picks span from Round 3 to Round 7. The higher picks go to the teams that endured the most significant free agent losses.
This year, the NFL awarded 35 comp picks. The comp pick formula assigns picks to franchises who suffered the largest net losses, so teams that signed multiple free agents have a lesser chance of receiving picks.
Sorted by round and by team, here are the league’s 2025 compensatory selections:
By round:
Round 3: Vikings (No. 97 overall), Dolphins (98), Giants (99), 49ers (100)*, Rams (101)*, Lions (102)*
Round 4: Dolphins (135), Ravens (136), Seahawks (137), 49ers (138)
Round 5: Bills (169), Cowboys (170), Cowboys (171), Seahawks (172), Bills (173), Cowboys (174), Seahawks (175), Ravens (176)
Round 6: Chargers (209), Ravens (210), Cowboys (211), Ravens (212), Raiders (213), Chargers (214), Raiders (215), Browns (216)
Round 7: 49ers (249), Packers (250), Chiefs (251), 49ers (252), Dolphins (253), Browns (254), Chargers (255), Dolphins (256), Chiefs (257)
By team:
- Baltimore Ravens: 4
- Dallas Cowboys: 4
- Miami Dolphins: 4
- San Francisco 49ers: 4
- Los Angeles Chargers: 3
- Seattle Seahawks: 3
- Buffalo Bills: 2
- Cleveland Browns: 2
- Kansas City Chiefs: 2
- Las Vegas Raiders: 2
- Detroit Lions: 1
- Green Bay Packers: 1
- Los Angeles Rams: 1
- Minnesota Vikings: 1
- New York Giants: 1
* = special compensatory selection