Follow Kansas City Chiefs’ latest news as NFL free agency negotiation period opens

The NFL’s open negotiation period — known as the “legal tampering” window — officially began at 11 a.m. Central Monday.

While the Chiefs have made big splashes on this day in previous years, the circumstances might prevent as much movement this time.

Mostly because Kansas City handled a huge offseason priority over the weekend.

On Saturday, the Chiefs agreed to terms with defensive tackle Chris Jones on a five-year, $95-million guaranteed extension, which should eat up a considerable chunk of the spending dollars on a team that already employs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Last week, KC also locked up linebacker Drue Tranquill to a three-year deal worth a guaranteed $13 million.

Even if the Chiefs aren’t among the top bidders for free agent on Monday, there will still be plenty to track. Part of that will be cornerback L’Jarius Sneed’s status, as he is a likely trade candidate after the team placed the franchise tag on him last week.

KC could also see some of its top pending free agents, such as defensive lineman Mike Danna, join new teams soon.

Salary cap estimations say the Chiefs don’t have as much wiggle room as years past. According to OverTheCap.com, the Chiefs are about $5 million over the cap following the Jones signing. Meanwhile, Spotrac says the Chiefs have about $1.6 million remaining to spend.

Our Sam McDowell wrote Monday about what he believes the Chiefs should do with each of their unrestricted free agents.

Here are the Chiefs-related happenings that have taken place so far:

• KC officially announced it had re-signed Jones.

Jones, who will turn 30 in July, was the unquestioned leader of the Chiefs’ defense last season. He earned first-team All-Pro honors with a 10 1/2-sack season.

“Chris is a future Pro Football Hall of Famer and, in our opinion, the best defensive tackle in the National Football League,” Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said in a release. “He earned every bit of this record-breaking contract.”

In a video posted to the Chiefs’ X (formerly Twitter) account, Jones shared his excitement following the deal.

“We’ve got five more years of greatness,” Jones said on the video. “I will be retiring a Chief. This is everything we dreamed about, talked about. Now it’s more Super Bowl rings, man. Let’s go.”

• The Las Vegas Raiders appeared to directly counter the extension for Jones with their own significant transaction, signing free agent defensive tackle Christian Wilkins to a four-year, $84.75 million guaranteed contract, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Wilkins, who played for the Miami Dolphins last year, ranked seventh on Pro Football Focus’ Top 200 free agents following his nine-sack campaign in 2023.

• Punter Tommy Townsend agreed to a two-year, $6 million deal with the Houston Texans, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Townsend, 27, spent his previous four seasons with the Chiefs, which included a first-team All-Pro campaign in 2022.

KC seemed to hint at Townsend’s looming departure last month when it signed punter and former 2022 sixth-round pick Matt Araiza.

• The Chiefs agreed to terms with long-snapper James Winchester, a source familiar with the situation confirmed to The Star. Winchester, 34, has spent the last nine seasons with the Chiefs after playing in college at Oklahoma. Chiefs Digest’s Matt Derrick reported the signing first.

While teams and free agents can agree to deals Monday and Tuesday, those can’t be made official until the league’s calendar year begins Wednesday.

• Guard Nick Allegretti has agreed to a three-year deal with the Washington Commanders, The Star has confirmed. The news was first reported by NFL insider Ari Meirov.

Allegretti, who was a backup most of the season before starting at left guard in Super Bowl LVIII, spent his previous five NFL seasons with KC after being selected by the Chiefs in the seventh round of the 2019 draft.

• KC announced it had given exclusive rights tenders to five players: linebackers Cole Christiansen and Jack Cochrane, guard Mike Caliendo, defensive end Malik Herring and cornerback Nazeeh Johnson.

The moves are procedural. Exclusive rights free agents — players with three or fewer accrued seasons and expiring contracts — must sign with their current team if they are offered a tender. Those deals are one-year contracts at the league minimum salary, based on each player’s experience.