Kansas City: Future 'Ma-Home' of the Lombardi?

         As NFL commissioner Roger Goodell handed the Vince Lombardi Trophy over to Andy Reid on Sunday evening, with it went the dynasty baton that had been under lock and key in Foxborough, Massachusetts since Tom Brady introduced himself to the world in Superbowl 36. The Kansas City Chiefs came from behind to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 31-20 on Sunday night to win their first Superbowl since 1970, making a statement across the league that they’re capable of anything.

Over the past twenty years the New England Patriots have tormented the rest of the NFL, particularly the AFC, reaching an astonishing nine Superbowl’s in eighteen years. One every other year. The utter dominance Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick have displayed across the two decades has rightly labelled them a dynasty within the game. Although the Patriots prevailed from last years ‘slugfest’ 13-3 Superbowl win over the Los Angeles Rams, Tom Brady and his offense have been heavily criticised over the past 18 months for their slack performances and relying on their defensive teammates bailing them out. At 42 years of age it looks increasingly likely that we’ve seen just about everything from the decorated Patriot’s Quarterback. Future Hall-of-Fame Tight End, Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement shortly after New England won their 6^th franchise Superbowl last February, adding to the offensive woes in Belichick’s squad. Coach Belichick himself is just two years away from his 70^th birthday and his departure is certainly on the horizon. We’re four days off the back of the Chiefs winning their first ‘World Championship’ in fifty years, what do the Patriots have to do with this? The Patriots are declining, very drastically. Yes, they won the AFC East (which includes the Jets and Dolphins… Just saying) but in the Wild Card round at home to the Tennessee Titans, New England and their star-studded defence looked a shadow of their former selves. Regular season rushing leader Derrick Henry had his way with the Pat’s D, throwing up 182 yards and a touchdown, eliminating New England on their own patch and kicking off the ‘death of a dynasty’ rumours. With Tom Brady and the Patriots drifting away into the distance in the AFC the younger generation of quarterbacks have already begun their pursuit for greatness. The previous two league MVP’s have both been QB’s under the age of 25 and both compete in the AFC. Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens this season and Chiefs fan favourite Patrick Mahomes last year.

          As Mahomes rallied his team back from a 10-point deficit with just over six minutes of regulation in the Superbowl, commentator and Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman declared Patrick Mahomes ‘the new face of the NFL’. Good with his feet, as strong an arm as you’ll see in football, a generally grounded individual, mixed race, Patrick Mahomes is a role model for younger children and someone who I doubt anyone could despise being the symbol for America’s most popular sport. At 24 years and 4 months old Mahomes became the second youngest QB to win a Superbowl on Sunday night in Miami.

When it comes to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs age is very much on their side. Running-back Damien Williams, a SB MVP candidate after his impressive performance, is only 27 years old and has just six years of NFL wear and tear on his body. An undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma, Williams has enough talent and time to join Mahomes and co in their push for more rings. Kansas City’s receiving core perhaps has an even brighter future. Rookie wide-receiver Mecole Hardman, turned 21 just one month before the Chiefs drafted him in the second-round last year. WR and return specialist Tyreek Hill has reached the Pro Bowl in each of his four seasons in the league, at just 25, Hill and his teammate Mahomes could build one of the all-time great QB/WR partnerships. The oldest of Mahomes’ target men and arguably the most important, Tight-End Travis Kelce, turned 30 midways through the season. One year older than legendary TE Rob Gronkowski when he hung up his cleats, fans shouldn’t fear retirement anytime soon from their electrifying Tight-End Kelce. Kelce isn’t like most TE’s out there. Light on his feet, Kelce is very agile and with a good level of pace, seems more like a disproportionate wide-receiver than your stereotypical Tight-End. Throughout the season and into the play-offs we sporadically saw Kelce line up behind the centre and take direct snaps, charging through the gaping holes like a running-back. Boasting the league’s most sought after QB is great but useless without the adequate protection. Fortunately for the Chiefs almost the entire Offensive Line, bar offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz (30), are under 30 years of age. Even defensively, their star man Tyrann Mathieu, though he feels like the veteran of the group, is still only 27. At the start of the 2019 campaign the Chiefs were just about smack bang in the middle of the league when it came to average roster age at 25.9 (via phillyvoice.com article).

Average ages vary between roughly 25 to 27 years old, just a two-year gap. The difference in the Chiefs case however is that with the lowest cap in the league, $166.99 million in 2019, they can hand big contracts out to their younger players at the end of their rookie deals. Patrick Mahomes is on the verge of record-breaking money as he embarks on his fourth season in the NFL, signalling an end to his rookie contract. It is almost guaranteed that the Kansas City Chiefs will make Mahomes the highest paid quarterback in league history given he guided the franchise to their first Superbowl victory in 50 years. Mahomes’ new contract could well be in excess of over $40 million annually based on the current highest paid, QB Russell Wilson, who’s deal up in the Pacific Northwest with the Seattle Seahawks sits at $35 million per year. Kansas must tread carefully with the handling of their contracts, however. Much like Seattle discovered in the aftermath of Wilson’s record-breaking contract negotiations, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. With such a large quantity of the salary cap occupied by Wilson’s $35 million per year, Seattle had to forfeit quality on other areas of the roster. The legendary ‘Legion of Boom’ defence that drove Seattle to back-to-back Superbowls in 2014 and 2015 was essentially dismantled last offseason. Restrictions on the salary cap saw Earl Thomas, Justin Coleman and Frank Clark depart the Seahawks, along with Richard Sherman who was picked up by divisional rivals San Francisco.

Mahomes is unequivocally the priority for KC moving forward, but where does that leave some of the side’s other key players? Wide-receiver Sammy Watkins played his part in the Superbowl 54 victory, torching Richard Sherman with just three minutes left and completing a catch which set up 1^st & goal and led to the eventual winning touchdown. Kansas City fans will appreciate the contribution Watkins made not only in the big game last Sunday but throughout his brief Arrowhead career. Unfortunately, Watkins is currently capped at $21 million and if released would free up a significant $14 million in cap space. There are no doubts surrounding Watkins ability but with Hill, Hardman and Kelce all remaining the saving of $14 million could be enough to curtail his time as a Chief. Inside Linebacker Reggie Ragland is also at the end of his rookie contract and will require a reasonable pay rise in order to stay a part of the ‘Chiefs Kingdom’. Suddenly, the lowest wage cap in the league is starting to fill up. Chris Jones, KC’s exciting young defensive end is also closing in on his final year of the rookie contract he signed. At $6 million per year, the Chiefs will soon find themselves digging deep into their pockets in order to keep Jones committed to Kansas. How much exactly? To put it into perspective regarding similar players, the Los Angeles Rams’ Pro-Bowl DE Aaron Donald is currently raking in $22.5 million annually. Whilst Jones isn’t quite of the Aaron Donald calibre at this stage in his early pro career, $6 million quite frankly isn’t going to do.

Kansas City have an abundance of youth and sheer talent to give the Vince Lombardi Trophy a permanent home at Arrowhead Stadium, however, this offseason could be a major turning point. How they spend their cap money, who signs on, who’s left behind, how they draft, their run at ascendancy in the NFL isn’t simple. The door to become the next dynasty in the league is well and truly open but it looks like the Chiefs are going to have to pay to get in.