There’s no denying that the Kansas City Chiefs are a football dynasty. From 202 to 2026, they played in five Super Bowls, winning three. Despite their recent success, the 2025 season was a complete disaster and begs the question: should the Chiefs blow it up after the 2026 season? It may seem impossible to fathom, but all good things must come to an end, and it’s better to be proactive about it.
Kansas City finished 6-11 last season, and while some may blame the loss of Patrick Mahomes to injury as a major reason, he only missed three games, and the team was 6-8 when he started. His completion percentage of 62.7, Touchdown-to-interception ratio of 2:1, and passer rating of 89.6 were all career lows. His 256.2 yards per game were the second-worst showing in his nine-year NFL career. At 30 years old (31 in September), it may be time to move on from him and start a new era of Chiefs football.
The Kansas City Chiefs Could Start By Trading Patrick Mahomes
It’s not only his performance on the field, but Mahomes’ contract that makes things dicey for the team. He is scheduled to count for $90 million against the team’s 2027 cap, putting them more than $16 million over. They could, and will in all likelihood, restructure the deal so that $50 million of that is converted to a signing bonus and spread out over the next five years. Then he would only count as $50 million in 2027, and the team would be $24 million under the cap.
The more they convert his pay to bonuses, though, the more guaranteed money (or dead cap) gets added to the deal each year, making Mahomes more and more difficult to trade. If they were to move him before the 2027 NFL Draft, his $89 million in dead cap would be spread out over the 2027 and 2028 seasons, or roughly $45 million per year. It could be totally worth it, given the quality of the upcoming quarterback class.
The Chiefs could also get quite a bounty for Mahomes, including not only a top-five pick next year, but a first-round pick the following year, possibly a third one down the road, and a couple of second-round picks to go with those. It all depends on the mentality of the teams at the top of the draft. Do they want to roll the dice on a quarterback who can contribute in two years, or get a legend who can help right now?
For Kansas City, it makes more sense to start over than try and hold the window open. Travis Kelce is the team’s leading receiver, and he’s likely hanging it up after the season. Rashee Rice is in prison, and they should walk away from him too. This leaves disappointing former first-round pick Xavier Worthy as the team’s WR1 in 2027, and Tyquan Thornton (who caught 19 passes last year) as WR2.
The Chiefs have a hole at right tackle, but the rest of their offensive line is 27 or younger and great at pass blocking, so it’s a great situation for a young signal-caller to walk into.
The Defense Is Already Being Rebuilt
The other side of the ball has already blown things up and is starting to rebuild. Cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson skipped town for palm trees and movie stars. Safety Brian Cook is on the Cincinnati Bengals now, and the pass rush is going to be handled by rookies R Mason Thomas and Peter Woods. Second-year defensive back Nohl Williams is the CB1 now, joined by rookie Mansoor Delane. This is not a veteran defense to build around; it’s a young defense learning to play, with no power offense to make up for their mistakes.
For this reason, Chris Jones should go too. He’s 32 and still productive enough to get back a late first-round pick in trade. His $19.5 million dead cap hit could be spread over two years ($9.75 million per year), so moving him and Mahomes would put Kansas City $54 million under the cap for 2027 and give them three first-round picks in the best draft in two decades.
A Blow-up Would Depend On 2026
Obviously, a complete overhaul like this is contingent on the Chiefs finishing this season middle of the pack or worse. If they were to make a deep playoff run, or possibly win the Super Bowl (which is unlikely given the lack of talent around Mahomes), the team would continue to run it back. They have to think about the future, though, and if they go 6-11 again, or even 9-8, they need to think about starting over.
It makes far more sense to start next year with Jeremiah Smith at wide receiver, Darrian Mensah at quarterback, and Jordan Seaton at tackle, along with $60 million for free agents, than to bring back aging players at quarterback and defensive tackle. This is especially true when those players are scheduled to account for nearly $130 million in cap space.
Team success is a lot like success in cards. Rule number one is “Check your emotion at the door.” Mahomes and Jones are great players who mean a lot to the franchise, but the team needs to ignore their sentimental value and start fresh in 2027.
