The Kansas City Chiefs must make some difficult decisions in the coming months, with impending free agent Nick Bolton near the top of their list. A second-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Missouri product earned a starting job as a rookie and never looked back. Playing a crucial role on two Super Bowl rosters, the homegrown talent is one of the league’s better linebackers and should have multiple suitors once he hits the open market.
Kansas City has one of the most talented lineups in football, but the salary cap means they won’t be able to retain everyone. As of this posting, the Chiefs are projected to have $20.9 million in cap space next year, which is well below the league average. Due to their relative financial constraints, Bleacher Report believes the Los Angeles Rams could sign Nick Bolton as a free agent, but they won’t be the only teams in the betting war.
“Bolton will probably be the top backer on the open market. He’s an impressive run defender who has racked up 441 total tackles and 31 tackles-for-loss in his career heading into the weekend…he’s been decent in coverage with 12 passes defended and doesn’t turn 25 until March.”
Chiefs Projected to Lose Free Agent Nick Bolton
It’s easy to see why the Los Angeles Rams would pursue Nick Bolton as a free agent. While the team has done a remarkable job bouncing back from a disastrous start, they must improve their run defense to become a legitimate contender. As of this posting, the unit ranks 23rd in EPA/rush allowed and Omar Speights is the only qualified linebacker with a top-50 PFF grade at the position. Factor in the potential loss of impending free agents Christian Rozeboom and Troy Reeder and you’re left with one of the weaker linebacker rooms in football.
Matthew Stafford isn’t getting any younger, so the Rams must make the most of his remaining time in the league. Armed with a projected $56.7 million in 2025 salary cap space, the team could outbid Kansas City for Nick Bolton, but they won’t be the only team interested in the impending free agent. While linebackers aren’t as important as they used to be, several teams across the league could use someone with Bolton’s skillset.
Other Fits
Nobody believes in the power of the run game more than Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh. Despite working with quarterbacks like Justin Herbert, Andrew Luck, and J.J. McCarthy throughout his collegiate and NFL career, the former passer has always built his team around running the ball on offense and stopping it on defense. 2023 third-round pick Daiyan Henley has broken out in Year 2, but Harbaugh could use another star to recreate the ferocious 49ers defense of the early 2010s. Seeing as they share a division, the Chargers should be familiar with what free agent Nick Bolton brings to the table and know how to utilize his skills.
The Carolina Panthers spent the offseason building the offense at the expense of the defense. Needing to know what they had in Bryce Young, Carolina rebuilt the offensive line while adding skilled pass-catching weapons in Xavier Legette, Ja’Tavion Sanders, and undrafted free agent Jalen Coker. Now, they must turn their attention to a defense that ranks at or near the bottom of every major statistic in football. If they fix the defense and Young makes a Year 3 leap, then perhaps Carolina can compete in a weak NFC South next year.
