Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes are winners of Day 1 of free agency say national NFL writers
The Chiefs wasted little time once NFL free agency began, agreeing to a deal with offensive lineman Joe Thuney on Monday, just hours after craziness began.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was clearly happy about the newest addition to the team, and national media members weighed in on the signing.
The Chiefs’ addition of Thuney was viewed positively among NFL pundits. Here’s what they were writing and saying:
ESPN’s Kevin Seifert gave the Chiefs a B grade for the signing.
This is part of what he wrote: “This is what happens when a clearly desperate team approaches the best player available at the position. Thuney’s $16 million average per year blows away the previous high for a guard in a multiyear deal, which had been $14.1 million for the Eagles’ Brandon Brooks. (Washington’s Brandon Scherff’s franchise tag in 2021 will be worth $18.036 million).
“To be clear, the Chiefs needed to remake their offensive line after bidding farewell to tackles Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz. It is also quite possible that center Austin Reiter will sign elsewhere. They are better off today than they were yesterday.”
Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports picked winners and losers from the first day of NFL free agency, and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was a winner.
Here is a portion of what he wrote: Patrick Mahomes clearly doesn’t want to get beaten up like he did in Super Bowl LV ever again. The quarterback recently restructured his contract with the Chiefs to give the club more cap space and it has provided immediate dividends with the team signing left guard Joe Thuney to a five-year deal. Thuney has been a key piece to the Patriots offense through two Super Bowl championships and now he’ll look to add to his résumé by blocking for Mahomes for the next half-decade.”
Mark Maske of the Washington Post declared the Chiefs a winner of the first day of free agency.
Here is an excerpt of what Maske wrote: “Addressing the offensive line is a priority for the Chiefs after the injury-depleted unit struggled during last month’s Super Bowl loss, as quarterback Patrick Mahomes was harassed almost constantly by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ pass rushers. The Chiefs just released starting offensive tackles, Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz, who were injured and missed the Super Bowl.”
Marcus Spears said on the “NFL on ESPN” that he predicted a Thuney/Chiefs marriage.
“We knew damn well the Kansas City Chiefs were going to address this offensive line,” Spears said. “They got half a billion dollars playing quarterback. There was no reason for us to think that Veach and the Kansas City Chiefs were not going to exhaust every expense to try to get that protection for Patrick Mahomes. Just like we watched the Super Bowl, they watched it too. They were there. They understand what they need to get it done. This is huge for them.”
Joe McBride of the Boston Globe wrote about the Chiefs signing the now former Patriots offensive lineman.
Here is an excerpt: “He started all 90 of the Patriots games (postseason included) — a remarkable run of durability in the NFL, and even more impressive considering how violent it gets in the trenches. ...
“He also provides valuable versatility, making emergency appearances at both tackle and center during his tenure in Foxborough.
“In 2019, Thuney went the entire season without being flagged for a penalty — another remarkable feat.”
SportsBetting.com gave the Chiefs’ odds of winning Super Bowl LVI a slight boost.
“The single pickup that moved the needle was Joe Thuney to Kansas City,” SportsBetting wrote. “The Chiefs went from 5/1 favorites to 9/2 (+450) favorites by strengthening what was a suspect offensive line.”
Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman was said to see Thuney leave:
This story was originally published March 16, 2021 at 10:46 AM.
