Chiefs News 3/13: Drue Tranquill Takes Pay Cut

The latest

Chiefs re-work LB Drue Tranquill’s Contract, Free Up $2.5 Million In Cap Space | NFL Trade Rumors

The Chiefs and LB Drue Tranquill have agreed upon a reworked contract that includes taking his base pay from $6 million down to $3.5 million, which includes $3 million fully-guaranteed, according to Mike Garafolo.

Tranquill was considered a potential cap casualty this off-season, but he will remain with the team for 2026.

Kansas City will save $2.5 million in cap space.

The Chiefs’ Biggest Roster Holes That Still Haven’t Been Addressed | Sports Illustrated

Pass Rusher

The top free agent pass rushers have come and gone, leaving the Chiefs with uninspiring options to consider. A.J. Epenesa is a legitimate possibility if Veach wants to strengthen the pass rush through free agency. In terms of a trade, Kansas City could target New York Giants’ edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux, who is apparently on the trade block. If the Chiefs can land the 2022 first-round pick, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract, for a mid-round draft pick, they should take that into consideration.

Drafting a pass rusher also remains on the table, but that will depend on how the board unfolds, specifically in the first half. Ideally, Kansas City would have the opportunity to land one of the top-three edge rushers in this year’s draft, which includes Arvell Reese, David Bailey, and Rueben Bain Jr.

Regardless of what the Chiefs ultimately decide, adding a pass rusher is a must, as the team ranked 26th in the NFL with 33 sacks in 2025.

Chiefs make desperation signing that Mike McDaniel can expose with the Chargers | Bolt Beat

Kader Kohou is a figure head for a flawed Chiefs secondary in 2026

Look, Kansas City has turned chicken salad out of worse in the past so maybe I will end up being the one with egg on his face when we look back at this in nine months. But as excited as Chiefs fans may be for the Kader Kohou signing, it is a move that is more revealing than it is exciting.

Kohou didn’t play the entire 2025 season and prior to that, was a totally fine slot corner whose overall coverage numbers in 2024 were quite solid. However, Kohou’s performances were rather boom or bust in 2024. He had five games where Pro Football Focus gave him a coverage grade below 50 and three games above 75. One of those games graded out above 90.

And that doesn’t even factor in his tackling. As promising as he can be in coverage at times, Kohou is a pretty porous tackler, which does matter more than you may think for a slot corner. If he is on the field, the Chargers can run at him every single chance they get. McDaniel knows this, and gets to utilize the strategy twice a year.

REPORT: Former Kansas City Chiefs DL Malik Herring to sign with Titans | Chiefs Wire

The Kansas City Chiefs will lose a reliable depth player on defense who worked hard behind the scenes to help the team prepare each week during Super Bowl runs.

According to NFL Insider Jordan Schultz, the Tennessee Titans are signing former Chiefs defensive lineman Malik Herring to a one-year deal.

Herring initially signed with Kansas City as a free agent after the 2021 NFL draft and had only played with the Chiefs over the course of his four-year career.

The former Georgia Bulldog has been a consistent member of the team through the practice squad. He has limited playing experience but has assumed a significant role in preparing the team during practices. The 28-year-old has earned his teammates’ respect for his relentless play.

Around the NFL

Kyler Murray signs with Vikings, ‘cannot wait’ to touch field | ESPN

Minnesota will pay $1.3 million of Murray’s $36.8 million salary for 2026. The Arizona Cardinals will pay the remainder as part of their decision to release him Wednesday. His new deal prohibits the Vikings from using a franchise or transition tag on him next offseason, sources told ESPN, giving him a guaranteed path to free agency if he wants it.

In Minnesota, Murray will have arguably the best supporting cast of his NFL career, which started in 2019 when the Cardinals made him the No. 1 pick of the draft. He’ll work with coach and playcaller Kevin O’Connell, tight end T.J. Hockenson and receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

“I cannot wait,” Murray said Thursday evening. “I cannot wait to touch that field and be a Minnesota Viking.”

Murray played for a team named the “Vikings” in youth football and said he grew up a “genuine” fan of the NFL’s Vikings as a result. Laughing at the memory, Murray said he “cried real tears” when Vikings quarterback Brett Favre threw an interception in the fourth quarter of the 2009 NFC Championship Game, which Minnesota lost to the New Orleans Saints in overtime.

New-age Titans unveil new-look logo, uniforms and helmets | NFL.com

With 2025 No. 1 overall pick and face of the franchise Cam Ward emerging from a shadowy locker room and onto a spotlighted field, the new-look Tennessee Titans were unveiled Thursday night.

And with that, the new-age Titans were born, featuring a fresh logo, uniform and helmet that mark the beginning of the franchise’s next chapter while heavily paying homage to the past, in particular to the look memorably donned by the “Luv Ya Blue” Houston Oilers of the late 1970s.

“We wanted to come up with something that took the best parts of all of that and bring it together in a way that makes sense,” Titans president and chief executive officer Burke Nihill said, via the team website. “I feel like we’re building on the legacy of what got us here, and we’re doing it in a way that is going to set the course of this organization for decades to come in a pretty special way.”

49ers reunite with Dre Greenlaw, add linebacker on 1-year, $7.5 million deal | The Athletic

Greenlaw was released this week by the Denver Broncos, one season into a three-year, $31.5 million deal he signed in March 2025. He played in only eight regular-season games for Denver as he dealt with quad and hamstring injuries. He missed one game because of a suspension after a verbal altercation with referee Brad Allen following Denver’s Week 7 victory against the New York Giants. He finished the season with 43 tackles, one interception and one forced fumble.

The linebacker was limited to just two games in 2024, his last season with the 49ers, after a long recovery from a torn Achilles suffered during Super Bowl LVIII in February 2024. He returned in Week 15 of the 2024 season and had eight tackles in a Thursday night loss to the Los Angeles Rams. He played only briefly the following week before missing the final two games of the season.

In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride

Chiefs Free Agency: 4 Winners and 3 Losers from first wave of action

Winners

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes: Every decision this team makes should be about maximizing the current and future health (and production) of the franchise quarterback. The team brought back two of his favorite pass catchers — tight end Travis Kelce and wide receiver Tyquan Thornton — while seemingly focused on improving the floor of the offensive line; along with decisions to move on from right tackle Jawaan Taylor and backup lineman Mike Caliendo, the team was reportedly aiming to sign veteran right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor.

Considering the narrative that the team has put too much on his shoulders (and legs) in recent years, we’re also hoping to see some changes in the offense. To that end, the team added the top running back available. Walker is a guy who can be a focal point of the offense and bring much-needed balance. It’s the first big sign that things are changing in Kansas City.

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