After back-to-back Super Bowl wins, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs couldn’t secure the first-ever three-peat, falling to the Philadelphia Eagles 40-22 in Super Bowl LIX.
Now, the Chiefs have started to prepare for the 2025 season, with free agency beginning on Feb. 12. The first domino to fall was tight end Travis Kelce, who has elected to return for his 12th year after pondering retirement. Kansas City was also able to lock up guard Trey Smith for the year, using the franchise tag on him.
But with every offseason comes some difficult decisions, and the Chiefs will likely have to face one of their own.
Kansas City has two standout defenders that saw their contracts expire following the Super Bowl loss: linebacker Nick Bolton and safety Justin Reid. And it appears the Chiefs are leaning toward not re-signing Reid.
On Tuesday, The Athletic’s Nate Taylor joined “Only Weird Games” on KCSN to discuss the Chiefs’ offseason. He proceeded to mention that Reid is likely on his way out of Kansas City.
“As I’ve told you, go ahead and salute Justin Reid,” Taylor said. “I don’t think that’s going to change… Yes, salute him, he’s gone. Don’t look back, it’s not happening. I don’t want to say these things definitively, but that’s pretty much what I’ve surmised.”
After spending his first four NFL seasons with the Houston Texans, Reid signed a three-year, $31.5 million contract with the Chiefs and made an instant impact. In 16 games in 2024, Reid recorded 87 tackles, two interceptions, and nine passes defended.
Reid, 28, can still be a valuable asset for another team. The former Stanford Cardinal safety has been a consistent presence for the Chiefs and Texans’ defenses, recording over 580 career tackles and 46 passes defended. He will certainly be a top target for teams when free agency begins.