Is Patrick Mahomes taking a pay cut? Chiefs star could restructure salary to land backup QB
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs just won the Super Bowl in what was considered to be a rebuilding year for them. However, after the Super Bowl win, veteran backup quarterback Chad Henne announced his retirement and the Chiefs now have to find his replacement.
In 2020, Mahomes signed a massive 10-year, $450 million contract with the Chiefs, which looked quite lofty back then, but now the Chiefs quarterback is on one of the most team-friendly deals.
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach recently suggested that the team could restructure Mahomes' deal to help with roster construction. According to Chiefs Wire, Veach stated:
"We have a lot of years with Pat’s contract and that’s something we’ll have to readjust as time goes on. We’ll just see. I mean all these teams are structurally different, how (the teams) handle contracts are different.
"The cash flows are different. So, it’ll be an interesting timeframe. We had to go through that hurdle there, now Cincinnati and (Los Angeles) and these teams have to go through that there.”
With Chad Henne gone, the Chiefs could step into the free-agent market and land a quarterback that could fulfill the role of being a backup to Mahomes without missing a beat.
Marcus Mariotta was recently released by the Atlanta Falcons, and he is the type of quarterback that many teams will pursue to fill the backup role. If the Chiefs go for Mariotta, they may renegotiate Mahomes' contract, which may result in the quarterback taking a pay reduction this season and having that money modified over the next few years.
The Kansas City Chiefs can still opt to bring back Shane Buechele, who served as a third-string quarterback behind Mahomes and Henne. Buechele is familiar with the Chiefs system, and bringing him back won't affect their salary cap much.
Patrick Mahomes will work under a new offensive coordinator next season
With Eric Bieniemy becoming the new offensive coordinator of the Washington Commanders, Patrick Mahomes will have a new offensive coordinator for next season.
The new OC for the Chiefs will be none other than former Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy. Nagy was the offensive coordinator for the Chiefs in 2017 before he went to Chicago, and Mahomes is excited to work with him.
A mic'd up @PatrickMahomes fully broke down one of the #Chiefs biggest defensive plays during the Super Bowl.
https://t.co/L8o3tb3D4I
Patrick Mahomes won the second MVP award of his career last season, as well as his second Super Bowl, and expectations for him will be high again next season.