KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Andy Reid has been an NFL head coach for some time, so losing players to free agency isn’t a new experience for him.
Still, the Kansas City Chiefs' coach is buckling up this year for what could be a wilder ride than normal. The Chiefs have 14 potential unrestricted free agents and could sustain heavy losses. The free-agent signing period begins on Wednesday.
“There’s a chance,’’ Reid said. “You know you can’t keep everybody. That’s just the name of the game. It’s constant change in the National Football League. Every year is different. There’s a chance we lose some people. We think we’ve got a good nucleus of guys coming up through, along with the draft and whatever else happens in free agency. We’ve communicated with most of our free agents. I think that’s been healthy. Any time there’s communication, that’s a good thing. We’ll just see. We’ve got to sit back and wait.’’
The Chiefs have already effectively kept the potential free agent they most wanted to retain, safety Eric Berry, off the market by naming him as their franchise player.
But there are plenty of other potential free agents the Chiefs would prefer to retain. The Chiefs are making an effort to re-sign several, including Pro Bowl linebackers Tamba Hali and Derrick Johnson.
General manager John Dorsey was talking specifically about Johnson but could have been speaking generally about the Chiefs’ free-agent philosophy when he said at the recent NFL scouting combine, “We’re not going to let good football players go in this thing.”
The defense could be hit particularly hard. Seven regulars from last season are potential free agents, including Hali and Johnson. The Chiefs could lose cornerback Sean Smith, leaving them vulnerable at one of the most important defensive positions. The defensive line could be left thin if the Chiefs lose Jaye Howard or Mike DeVito or both. They could in 2016 be without two key safety reserves in Husain Abdullah and Tyvon Branch.
The potential losses wouldn’t be as great on offense, but the Chiefs still stand to lose starting offensive linemen Jeff Allen and Donald Stephenson, backup quarterback Chase Daniel and wide receiver Jason Avant.
The other potential free agents play mostly on special teams: linebackers Frank Zombo and Dezman Moses and cornerback Jamell Fleming.
