The Chiefs are keeping Nick Bolton off the market.
Kansas City is reportedly re-signing the 24-year-old linebacker to a three-year, $45M contract, including $30 million guaranteed.
Re-signing Bolton appeared near impossible after the Chiefs decided to place the franchise tag on right guard Trey Smith, which marks a $23.4M cap hit if an extension does not materialize.
However, on Wednesday, Kansas City reportedly agreed to trade All-Pro guard Joe Thuney to the Chicago Bears, which would free up $16M in cap space. That could have been a telling sign of the Chiefs’ intentions to bring Bolton back to Kansas City.
The 2021 second-round pick has 289 solo tackles, five sacks, 169 assisted tackles, 15 passes defended, four interceptions and two forced fumbles in 57 career games.
It is obviously a great deal for Kansas City, who, in the process, keeps the star linebacker from division rivals.
Several questions surrounded the Chiefs’ offseason plans as Smith, Bolton and safety Justin Reid were all slated to hit the free agent market.
GM Brett Veach and the front office made the correct decision in locking up Smith, who is reportedly currently working on a contract extension with the Chiefs, and Bolton.
The Chiefs only have six draft picks in the upcoming draft, and with the amount of money allocated to Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones, Creed Humphrey, Travis Kelce, Smith and Bolton, the importance of this draft process is magnified.
This team is getting older and more expensive. Locking up cornerstone players is always a good start, but hitting on picks consistently is a must for the Chiefs if they want to continue to compete for Lombardi Trophies.
Nonetheless, Kansas City’s front office has done a tremendous job this offseason of retaining key players while not mortgaging the future.
