The Kansas City Chiefs have lost one of the few three-time Super Bowl champions remaining on the team. Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, and Travis Kelce will see an important contributor play for the New York Jets in the 2025 NFL season.
WithĀ Travis KelceĀ postponing his retirement from theĀ NFLĀ after a painfulĀ Super BowlĀ loss,Ā Andy ReidĀ andĀ Patrick MahomesĀ are ready to run things back next year. TheĀ Kansas City Chiefs, however, will see a player who was part of their success suit up for theĀ New York JetsĀ next year.
On Sunday, the agency SportsTrust Advisors revealed thatĀ defensive tackle Derrick NnadiĀ is leaving the Chiefs to join theĀ JetsĀ as a free agent for the 2025 NFL season. The player spent seven years at Arrowhead, playing each of the last three seasons on a one-year deal before taking a different direction in 2025.
Ndadi, who turns 29 in May, was one of the few remaining players who celebratedĀ all threeĀ Super BowlĀ titles with Reid, Mahomes, and Kelce in Kansas City. In fact, he was also the last remaining player from the 2018 NFL Draft class on the Chiefs.
A third round pick out of Florida State, NdadiĀ almost reached 100 appearancesĀ with theĀ Chiefs. In 99 games played (including playoffs), he proved valuable for Steve Spagnuoloās defense with 271 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, six sacks, two passes defended, one forced fumble, and an interception.
Chiefs make moves in free agency
While Ndadiās exit will probably require attention from the front office at the position, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach has stayed busy trying to keep Reid, Mahomes, and Kelce in a position to chase another Super Bowl in 2025. The GM has been making moves since the start of theĀ NFLĀ legal tampering period,Ā pulling off even more transactionsĀ when free agency officially got underway.
The Chiefsā first addition in the open market was Jaylon Moore, hoping to fix the left tackle issues that haunted Reid andĀ MahomesĀ in 2024. They immediately pickedĀ another player out of contractĀ with the San Francisco 49ers by signing running back Elijah Mitchell.
With Carson Wentz expected to draw interest from other teams as his one-year deal in Kansas City expired, the Chiefs signed quarterback Gardner Minshew to provide ReidĀ some insuranceĀ behind Mahomes. In addition, they brought back Bailey Zappe, who may compete with Minshew for the QB2 spot throughout the offseason.
The team also addedĀ on the defensive side of the ballĀ by landing former Los Angeles Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton and former Minnesota Vikings defensive end Jerry Tillery, but perhaps the most important news came with contract extensions.
Important players staying in Kansas City
The Chiefs are bringing back linebackers Blake Lynch and Cole Christiansen as well as defensive end Malik Herring, apart from placing the tender on LB Jack Cochrane and CB Nazeeh Johnson to keep more Super Bowl champions on the team.
However, itās safe to say that Veachās best work came with the extensions for wide receiver Marquise āHollywoodā Brown and running back Kareem Hunt,Ā keeping key playmakersĀ around Mahomes andĀ Kelce.