Chiefs reportedly restructure Patrick Mahomes' deal to open up over $40 million against the salary cap
Chiefs reportedly restructure Patrick Mahomes' deal to open up over $40 million against the salary cap
Nick Bromberg Wed, February 18, 2026 at 1:53 PM UTC
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The Kansas City Chiefs have used Patrick Mahomes’ contract to free up over $40 million in salary-cap space.
According to multiple reports, the Chiefs have restructured Mahomes’ deal to lower his cap hit from $78.2 million to under $35 million for the 2026 season.
Before the restructure, the Chiefs were over the cap by over $50 million and are still not cap compliant at the moment with this move. But the Chiefs could quickly get there with just one or two other moves. The team can save $20 million against the cap by releasing right tackle Jawaan Taylor, for instance. Defensive tackle Chris Jones' deal could be redone as well if the Chiefs are looking to open up more short-term cap space for free-agency maneuvering.
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Mahomes’ contract was always likely to be restructured ahead of the season given his projected cap number. Only Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson ($80.7 million) had a higher cap number going into the 2026 season.
It’s not the first time Mahomes’ contract has been redone, either. The Chiefs redid Mahomes’ deal ahead of the 2023 season. Mahomes first signed an extension with the team that kicked in during the 2020 season and goes through the 2031 season. His total contract value of $450 million, including non-guaranteed money, ranks No. 1 in the NFL by far, ahead of the Bills’ Josh Allen and the Bengals’ Joe Burrow.
Mahomes, 30, suffered a torn left ACL in a December loss to the Los Angeles Chargers and is pushing to be ready for Week 1 of the 2026 season. The Chiefs are also reportedly hoping to have tight end Travis Kelce return for another season. Kelce has been publicly non-committal about his future after the 2025 season.
After going 6-11 in 2025, the Chiefs have the No. 9 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. It's the first time the Chiefs have picked in the top 10 since Mahomes was drafted by the franchise in 2017.
Source: “AOL Sports”
