Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Taco Charlton.
How’s this for Taco Tuesday, Chiefs Kingdom? On the second day of free agency, the Kansas City Chiefs reportedly re-signed promising defensive end Taco Charlton to a one-year deal. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero was one of the first to report the news via Twitter.
The #Chiefs are re-signing DE Taco Charlton to a one-year deal, per source.
The former first-round pick seemed to confirm the reports minutes after it became public, declaring via his own Twitter account that “WE NOT DONE YET.”
Charlton played two years with the Dallas Cowboys and was released in 2019. The 26-year-old then spent one season in South Beach with the Miami Dolphins before taking his talents to the midwest to play for the 2020 Super Bowl champions.
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Though he didn’t play much last year due to a fractured ankle, general manager Brett Veach and head coach Andy Reid saw enough to rationalize bringing back the former Michigan Wolverine for a second year at Arrowhead Stadium. With the offseason a period to fully dedicate to rehabilitation, Charlton should hopefully be ready to pick up where he left off when minicamp starts in June.
There’s a Lot of Opportunity for Charlton To Redeem Himself
Compared to other teams around the league, the Chiefs haven’t made any headline-grabbing news, but it’s rather who will not be returning that have fans and analysts talking.
Due to an inconsistent injury history, fellow DE Alex Okafor could leave Kansas City during free agency. An impressive player, the 30-year-old missed key games in the first month of the 2020 season due to a hamstring knock and briefly spent time on injured reserve toward the middle of the campaign.
The year before, Okafor suffered a season-ending pectoral sprain in 2019 after making a sack on Denver Broncos quarterback Drew Lock.
Chiefs Have Been Restructuring Contracts To Create Cap Space
In an effort to beef up their roster, the Chiefs are hard at work restructuring deals with current players in order to remain competitive with identified talent across the NFL and incoming rookies.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was the first to undergo a restructured deal, with the team converting the new father’s $21.7 million roster bonus into a signing bonus, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Tom Brady isn’t the only QB providing cap relief to his team; Patrick Mahomes is expected to do the same. Chiefs are expected to convert Mahomes’ $21.7 million roster bonus to a signing bonus in the coming days, which would save KC $17 million against the cap, per league sources.
This would allow Veach a cool $17 million to work with, which was likely put to use in the first day of free agency. The Chiefs reportedly reached an agreement with former New England Patriots offensive lineman Joe Thuney to a five-year contract worth $80 million with $32.5 million guaranteed over two seasons.
Next up could be tight end Travis Kelce and defensive tackle Chris Jones, with the two carrying a $7.75 million and a $20 million roster bonus, respectively. Though not required to entirely convert these amounts, doing so could free up at least $19.5 million and bring Kansas City available cap space to almost $33 million.
This is shaping up to be an interesting offseason for the defending champions of the AFC.
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Chiefs Re-Sign Promising DE To One-Year Deal: Report