Kansas City Chiefs make big splash, agree to deal with All-Pro offensive lineman
One year after the Chiefs made a Patrick Mahomes contract extension their top priority, they’ve shifted their focus to doing more to protect that investment.
This is quite a start.
The Chiefs have agreed to a five-year contract with former New England Patriots lineman Joe Thuney, according to his agent. The deal is worth up to $80 million, according to ESPN, which would make him the league’s highest-paid interior lineman.
The agreement can not become official until the new league year opens at 3 p.m. Wednesday. But the league-wide negotiation period opened Monday.
The Chiefs immediately reeled in a big investment, made possible under the salary cap with the restructure of several veteran contracts, including Mahomes, Chris Jones and Travis Kelce.
Thuney, 28, won two Super Bowl championships with New England, and he was a second-team All-Pro selection in 2019. He plays primarily left guard, though he filled in at center last season following the injury to a teammate. A year ago, the Patriots used the franchise tag to keep Thuney for the 2020 season. That paid him $14.78 million.
He moves from the dynasty in New England to another franchise trying to replicate it — but one in need of offensive line help. The Chiefs’ line play became the primary culprit of last month’s Super Bowl loss to Tampa Bay, a night in which Mahomes spent scrambling nearly 500 yards in search of time to throw the football.
“I think it’s safe to say we’ll be addressing that in any and every way we can,” Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said.
Earlier this month, the Chiefs subtracted from the group, releasing tackles Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz, both of whom will be coming off injuries. Thuney played some tackle in college, but his NFL All-Pro spot is along the interior.
The Patriots drafted Thuney in the third round in 2016 out of North Carolina State. He won the starting left guard job as a rookie and has started every game since, playing at least 97% of his team’s offensive snaps in all five seasons.
He has been rated as the third-most valuable guard in the NFL since 2017, according to Pro Football Focus. He allowed two sacks in 2020, one in 2019 and zero in 2018, per PFF numbers. He also went 16 games in 2019 without being flagged once.
This story was originally published March 15, 2021 at 3:29 PM.