I think you can totally keep Creed and Smith. By the time their contracts are up....Thuney is probably gone. Now that's all going to depend on Brown as well.

Bolton and Gay are interesting though. I saw a tweet that they got Chenal work with the green dot in the first preseason game so that he could be the back up at MLB to Bolton. Obviously that doesn't mean that Bolton is gone after his rookie deal.

Yup, I think that's why you saw him play so much when he did in the second half. They wanted him to get reps at that MLB position.

It would be hard, for sure. There's not a lot of fat left on this roster and few true luxury items. I would say that Thuney is the only 'excess' in that regard. Jones won't be back at his number either.

I'm inclined to agree that some of those guys will walk - but you want to keep your options open if possible. I really was disappointed we couldn't get a deal done with Ward LAST season because he seemed due for a breakout and a potential value contract. If you have some wiggle room, you can be a little more proactive in trying to find guys like that. Hardman's really the only guy you might be able to get a pre breakout discount on right now (who's extension eligible) but next year there will be a few of them in that category.

If Gay were extension eligible I'd be all over that. I think he's gonna bust out biggly this season.

I just think they wanted him to get reps - period.

His nose for contact and his athleticism really do jump out at you. But man he looks lost in space sometimes. He needs experience in a big way and it's going to be hard to get him that during live-fire games because some of the mistakes he would be prone to making will be complete breakdowns that can lead directly to points.

I'd like to see him play a ton this pre-season.

I think you might see the Chiefs try and bring back Juju if he has a solid year this year. Kelce is getting older and Juju should feast in those short to intermediate routes.

Plus is he really going to want to move on from having Mahomes at QB?

No question; but there's probably a sweet spot. If he plays like he played in 2018 I don't think they'll want to pay for him. If he plays like he played in 2020, he won't have demonstrated that he's worth retaining.

I think the 2019 version of him (but pro-rated over a full season) comes back on a 3 year, $45 million type deal. But that Kirk contract screwed up the WR market so much that we may just be in for a few years of letting the first wave of FA sort itself out before we jump in on the second tiers.

Every 900+ yard receiver in the league is going to think he's worth Kirk's deal and won't sign early if you aren't offering it. So we may have to slow-play the position for a bit.

All true. Juju doesn't seem like the kind of guy to try and squeeze out every penny he can get. The dude took less money to stay in Pitt because they were loyal to him and then he took what basically amounts to a prove it deal in KC because of Mahomes/Reid.

If he has a decent season....I think he'd come back for a deal that's a little below market value. He generally seems like he loves it here.

I think if JuJu finds success in KC, he's likely to not just be out there looking for the most money he can get. You can keep him so long as it's a fair deal IMO. Hardman is the interesting one for me. It sure feels like the absence of Hill has made Mecole able to be himself. I think he's going to have a big year.

I’ve heard a couple people say Chenal has been slower than the rest of the class to pick up the playbook and individual responsibility class work.

Green Bay had two chances to grab Karlaftis but their dumb GM opted for Walker and Wyatt. Same thing he did last year when Humphrey was sitting on his lap yet he opted for Josh Myers.
Having dumb GMs from the opposing teams is what enables dynasties like the Chiefs.

He just isn’t familiar with playing coverage. But he’s going to work as hard as anyone to get there. It might take until next season, but I’m not worried.

On anything downhill the guy has s a beast. He’s going to be a great addition vs. the run, flares, screens, and rushing the QB this year.

Yeah, I think it's a good idea to always look ahead.

As much as I like Bolton, I'd think Gay's athleticism would put his upside a bit higher on who I'd like to keep but we're way out in the future here.

Seeing as it will be hard and they are all at positions that may be a little easier to find, it may be best to fill those via draft picks and find your DE or what not thru FA.

damn, nice

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">George Karlaftis with the hand flash and bend around the corner �� <a href="https://t.co/63VSmSfujj">pic.twitter.com/63VSmSfujj</a></p>&mdash; Austin Gayle (@austingayle_) <a href="https://twitter.com/austingayle_/status/1559238415538966536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 15, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

That’s George knowing the guy blocking him has absolutely no chance before the snap.

Another thing that speaks to his coachability is watching last weeks the franchise show and watching them work while I was at camp, a big thing they keep pressing George on is to keep reaching fir the play as he gets close and you see him do it EVERY SINGLE TIME against Chicago.

This kids going to be really special.