KC Chiefs GM Brett Veach discusses team’s approach to free agent safety Tyrann Mathieu
Safety Tyrann Mathieu’s tweet sounded a bit like a farewell.
At least that’s how some Kansas City Chiefs fans read his social media message on Monday, the day after Sunday’s AFC Championship Game loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
“Will always remember you & many more good people!” Mathieu tweeted to former Chiefs employee B.J. Kissel. “Lot to be proud of over the past 3 years. I’m thankful and grateful. I leave with a grateful heart having got the chance to play for all you good people! Thanks.”
The latter part of the tweet stoked speculation that Mathieu, who played the 2021 season in the final year of his contract at age 29, had played his last game in a Chiefs uniform.
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach addressed Mathieu’s tweet on Tuesday.
“I wouldn’t necessarily (say) that’s true,” Veach said. “Tyrann is a really passionate person and he wears his emotions on his sleeve. He speaks from the heart and that’s what he does.
“I think the one thing that is clear is his genuine love and passion for this city, for this locker room, for being here. I think the one thing that jumps off the screen when you’re listening to him talk is he loves playing and living in Kansas City. There are certain things that are out of his control and, at the moment, out of our control until we get more information and work through the process.”
The updated data the Chiefs require before taking a potential next step in what’s been an ongoing negotiation process surrounds the salary cap, which has yet to be officially set ahead of the NFL’s new calendar year on March 16. Early projections suggest a $208.2 million cap figure, an increase from the $182.5 million cap governing teams’ salary expenditures in 2021.
Mathieu played the 2021 season earning a base salary of $14.5 million. The Chiefs hoped to get a contract extension done with Mathieu before the start of the regular season and have never wavered from their desire to sign him longer-term.
Last year’s salary cap was an obstacle, and the team wanted to revisit Mathieu’s situation at the conclusion of the season.
“Those plans haven’t changed at all,” Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said in November. “It was something that we discussed with Tyrann and his representative in the offseason before we started playing regular-season games. But really, once we got in the season, it’s really best for both parties to wait for the end of the year.”
That time is now, a little more than a month before Mathieu and other NFL free agents are scheduled to hit the open market as free agents.
The Chiefs project to have $15.4 million in available cap space under the adjusted 2022 salary cap, according to Spotrac.com, a website that monitors the NFL’s cap situation.
Veach emphasized that Mathieu is among the players “at the top of the list” in terms of the Chiefs’ priorities over the coming month. And with the regular season over, the Chiefs are likely to reopen negotiations with Mathieu’s representatives before the start of the NFL’s new calendar year.
As for Mathieu’s cryptic tweet, Veach understands where the three-time All-Pro safety is coming from.
“I think sometimes when you get guys that are that passionate and feel so strongly about being somewhere, they’re just saying, ‘Hey, listen, if this was it, man, I loved it,’” Veach explained. “I know deep down he wants to be here, and as we mentioned to him before the season, once we’re able to look at the cap and look at where we’ll be in ’23 and down the road, other deals and other moves …
“We’ll certainly exchange ideas and put our best foot forward.”
