Chiefs opening up salary cap space by restructuring Patrick Mahomes' contract, per report

During the heyday of the New England Patriots’ dynasty, quarterback Tom Brady routinely played under his market value so the front office could bolster the rest of the roster. 

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs still have a long way to go before their dynasty is comparable to the Pats', but they have clearly taken that page of the playbook to sustain success. 

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Mahomes is restructuring his contract to create $21.6 million in cap space for Kansas City this offseason. This is the second restructuring of his deal in the past six months.

Mahomes inked a 10-year, $450 million extension with the Chiefs during the 2020 offseason. The three-time Super Bowl MVP and the team reworked the deal last September so that Mahomes would make $208.1 million from 2023-26. The details of this latest financial maneuver were immediately unknown. His deal was set to account for $58.6 million against the cap in 2024 prior to the restructure, per Spotrac.

Kansas City entered the offseason with $7,478,547 in cap space, which was 25th in the league.

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The Chiefs unofficially started this free-agent cycle by re-singing defensive tackle Chris Jones to a five-year deal with $95 million guaranteed. They placed the franchise tag on cornerback L’Jarius Sneed as they try to work out a long-term deal with him. 

Several of Mahomes’ peers have done deals in the intervening years that have secured more average annual value than Mahomes’ initial $45 million. According to USA TODAY Sports’ NFL salaries database, Mahomes entered the 2023 season ranked eighth on the list of top-paid QBs.