Creed Humphrey

Chiefs Notes: Suamataia, Perine, Humphrey

September 2nd, 2024 at 6:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

Kingsley Suamataia represents the only new piece along the Chiefs’ offensive line this season. The second-round rookie beat out Wanya Morris for the team’s left tackle job, the Kansas City Star’s Jesse Newell notes. The Chiefs had brought in the BYU product for a “30” visit and traded up (via the 49ers) one spot for the rookie blocker in Round 2. The agile prospect will succeed Donovan Smith, who remains a free agent. Kansas City needed to adjust at left tackle after seeing Orlando Brown Jr. reject its extension offer at the July 2022 franchise tag deadline. Although that caused some frustration among Chiefs brass, the team got by with Smith (with Morris as his backup) in 2023. The team now has Suamataia signed through the 2027 season.

Here is the latest out of Kansas City:

Andy Reid has apparently shown notable hesitancy about adjusting to his current area code, as Samaje Perine confirmed the 12th-year Chiefs HC called him from a phone still tied to the Philadelphia region. The veteran running back said (via ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher) he heard directly from Reid when making his decision about where to sign. This reminds of Reid’s pitches to J.J. Smith -Schuster and Drue Tranquill, both of whom having now signed two Chiefs contracts. Kansas City added Perine shortly before placing Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the reserve/NFI list. The veteran, who served as the Broncos’ top passing-down back in 2023 before being cut last week, joins rookie UDFA Carson Steele as the Chiefs’ active-roster RBs behind starter Isiah Pacheco.
The Chiefs have not seen a player seize their No. 2 cornerback job, and they looked to the waiver wire for some depth. The two-time defending champions submitted unsuccessful claims on corners Samuel Womack and Shemar Bartholomew, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates. Waived by the 49ers, Womack ended up with the Colts. Bartholomew did not make it past the No. 1 spot on the wire; the Panthers made the rookie UDFA one of their six claims Wednesday. Kansas City will start Trent McDuffie, preparing to use him outside and in the slot once again, but has not landed on a full-time L’Jarius Sneed replacement. McDuffie 2022 draft classmates Joshua Williams and Jaylen Watson saw the most time last year, and the team kept yet another 2022 draftee — seventh-rounder Nazeeh Johnson — on the roster as well. Reid said recently the team may use a rotational setup into the season.
Creed Humphrey reset the center market recently, agreeing to a four-year, $72MM extension. Of the fourth-year center’s $50MM guarantee number, OverTheCap indicates $35MM is guaranteed at signing. The Chiefs fully guaranteed Humphrey’s 2024 and ’25 base salaries and locked in $8.9MM of his 2026 base ($14.3MM) at signing. If/when Humphrey is on Kansas City’s roster on Day 3 of the 2025 league year, the remainder of his 2026 base locks in. That rolling guarantee structure is in place for Humphrey’s 2027 pay as well, with $10MM of his $17.2MM ’27 base salary becoming guaranteed on Day 3 of the ’27 league year. In terms of AAV, Humphrey’s $18MM number leads the center market by more than $4MM.

Chiefs, Creed Humphrey Agree To Center-Record Extension

August 22nd, 2024 at 9:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chiefs are set to raise the center market by a considerable margin. They have a deal in place with standout snapper Creed Humphrey, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. The terms are quite notable.

Humphrey agreed to a four-year deal worth $72MM, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter tweets. This makes the fourth-year blocker the NFL’s highest-paid center — by a lot. Entering Thursday, the NFL’s center ceiling rested at $13.5MM per year. Humphrey will take that to $18MM, with Schefter adding $50MM will be guaranteed on this contract. On a deal that ties the 25-year-old center to the Chiefs through 2028, the guarantee figure also comes in well north of any other snapper.

This deal moves Humphrey closer to the guard ceiling than where the center market has stood. Coming into today, Frank Ragnow‘s four-year, $54MM deal topped the market. The Lions blocker’s $42MM guarantee represented the only center guarantee higher than $34MM. After three promising seasons, Humphrey moved the Chiefs to create a new level among center contracts. This convinced the former second-round pick to pass on a run at free agency in 2025.

A Humphrey extension loomed on Kansas City’s radar for a bit, with both he and breakthrough right guard Trey Smith eligible for new deals in 2024. Smith remains attached to his rookie contract, and Humphrey’s payday stands to impact the Chiefs’ ability to keep their other standout interior blocker. Joe Thuney remains on an upper-echelon guard pact (five years, $80MM; the All-Pro LG’s contract runs through the 2025 season.

The Chiefs did not see high-priced right tackle Jawaan Taylor pan out in Year 1 of his deal, calling into question his long-term Missouri future. The two-time reigning champions also are transitioning at left tackle, not re-signing 2023 starter Donovan Smith. Inside, however, the Chiefs may have the NFL’s best trio. ESPN’s pass block win rate metric ranked Thuney, Humphrey and Smith first, second and fourth among interior O-linemen last season. This group played a key role in keeping the Chiefs on track during an uncharacteristically clunky season on offense.

Pro Football Focus has graded all three Humphrey seasons as top-class offerings, ranking him first among centers in 2021 and ’22 and fourth last season. PFF viewed Humphrey’s work in the run game as superior to his pass-blocking skills last season. It is clear the Chiefs agree with the Oklahoma alum’s standing, as this contract clearly became required to convince Humphrey — an unrealistic candidate for a 2025 franchise tag due to all O-linemen being grouped under one umbrella — to pass on moving toward free agency. Humphrey, who has never missed a game, is a two-time Pro Bowler; Jason Kelce‘s retirement also clears the way for other centers to begin earning first-team All-Pro distinctions.

The Chiefs had kept costs low at center throughout not only the Patrick Mahomes era but the Alex Smith years as well. Kansas City did not re-sign four-year starter Mitch Morse in 2019 and primarily used Austin Reiter at the pivot in 2020. The Buccaneers’ Super Bowl LV romp prompted GM Brett Veach to drastically overhaul the line, and Humphrey, Smith and Orlando Brown Jr. arrived. Brown’s decision to pass on a six-year Chiefs extension offer at the July 2022 franchise tag deadline helps make this Humphrey accord possible.

Thursday evening’s agreement marks the first salvo in a Chiefs effort regarding their strong 2021 draft class. The team also added Nick Bolton in that year’s second round. The off-ball linebacker joins Smith as an extension candidate. It will also be interesting to see how the Chiefs move forward with Thuney post-2024, as his deal includes no guarantees. Clearing out Thuney’s contract would open the door for a Smith payment. Taylor’s contract pays out its guarantees in 2024, giving the NFL’s top 2020s franchise some flexibility as it determines its O-line future.

Chiefs Eyeing Extensions For C Creed Humphrey, RG Trey Smith, LB Nick Bolton

August 5th, 2024 at 11:11am CST by Adam La Rose

The Chiefs have been busy this offseason with respect to retaining in-house players from the 2023 Super Bowl-winning team. Three key contributors remain as extension priorities ahead of Week 1.

Maintaining a strong trio along the interior offensive line in particular is a top goal for Kansas City. The team is eyeing extensions for center Creed Humphrey and right guard Trey Smith before the start of the campaign, as detailed by The Athletic’s Nate Taylor (subscription required). Both players are entering the final year of their rookie contracts; that is also true of linebacker Nick Bolton, whom Taylor notes is on the Chiefs’ extension list.

“They are three really good players and they’re fantastic people,” general manager Brett Veach said of the trio (via Taylor). “Throughout this camp, hopefully, we’re able to get more than one done. It’s just going to be a systematic approach and exchange of communication. We would want nothing more than for them to be here (long term) and I’m sure they would want nothing more than to be here.”

Humphrey established himself as a top center prospect during his college career, and he has served as a full-time starter since his rookie campaign. The Oklahoma alum was PFF’s top-ranked player at his position during each of his first two seasons in the league, and he drew the fourth-best evaluation in 2023. Humphrey should therefore have a strong chance at topping the center market on a new deal, something which would entail an AAV of $13.5MM or higher.

Smith was a highly-touted prospect coming out of high school, but his college tenure was marked by injuries and blood clot issues. The Tennessee alum’s draft stock took a hit as a result, but things have gone according to plan at the NFL level so far. Smith, 25, has missed only one contest to date with Kansas City. PFF has slotted him between 10th and 15th amongst qualifying guards every year, so he too could command a major raise on his next contract and potentially price himself out of Kansas City.

The guard market has surged in recent years. 2024 saw the number of players earning an average of $20MM or more increase to four, and the Eagles’ Landon Dickerson leads the way at $21MM per season. Given the gap between the guard and center positions, a Smith accord could check in at a higher price tag than a Humphrey extension. The Chiefs’ left guard, Joe Thuney, has two years remaining on his contract and is set to carry a cap hit of just under $27MM in 2024 and ’25.

While that figure will factor into Kansas City’s offensive line planning, it will also need to be taken into account for Bolton. The team’s second-round selection in 2021 has been productive from the start of his Chiefs tenure, reaching triple-digit tackles in each of his first two seasons. Bolton was limited to eight regular season games in 2023 due to a wrist injury, but he was healthy in time for Kansas City’s postseason run.

Willie Gay signed with the Saints this offseason, and his departure created a vacancy in the starting lineup. Drue Tranquill was retained on a three-year deal, though, and he and Bolton will be counted on to remain productive in the middle of the Chiefs’ defense. The latter will help his market value with another productive season in 2024 on a new Kansas City accord (unless an extension is worked out shortly) or one taking him to a new team on the open market.

Taylor names kicker Harrison Butker as another extension candidate for Kansas City. The 29-year-old is set to earn $3.84MM in 2024, the final year of his current deal. A raise could be on tap given his consistency during his Kansas City tenure, although considerable resources will of course be needed to keep as many members of the Humphrey-Smith-Bolton trio as possible. It will be interesting to see how many deals the Chiefs – currently projected to have roughly $13MM in 2025 cap space – work out before the offseason comes to a close.

Latest On Future Of Chiefs’ Offensive Line

July 1st, 2024 at 8:14pm CST by Ben Levine

The Chiefs have gotten remarkable consistency from their interior OL over the past three seasons, but 2024 might mark the trio’s final season together in Kansas City. As Nate Taylor of The Athletic writes, there’s a chance that offensive guard Trey Smith may be entering his final season with the Chiefs.

This prediction says nothing of Smith’s production nor importance to the organization. Smith has graded out as one of Pro Football Focus’ top-15 offensive guards in each of his three NFL seasons, including a 2023 campaign where he ranked 10th among 79 qualifying players. The former sixth-round pick has also avoided injuries, appearing in 60 of 61 possible games between 2021 and 2023 (including playoffs).

So, Smith’s chances of sticking in Kansas City is more a reflection of his upcoming market value. If Smith has another healthy and productive season in 2024, he’ll be setting himself up to be one of the top free agents at his position. He’ll be joining the likes of Sam Cosmi, Quinn Meinerz, and Zack Martin. Robert Hunt joined Chris Lindstrom in the $20MM AAV club among guards this offseason, and there’s a chance Smith could join that grouping in 2025.

The Chiefs could try to squeeze Smith into their future budgets, but as Taylor notes, the team will have other pressing free agency issues. Center Creed Humphrey and linebacker Nick Bolton are also impending free agents, and Taylor suggests the organization may prioritize re-signing that duo over Smith.

Considering the impending free agencies of Smith and Humphrey, there’s a good chance the 2024 season marks the end of the team’s guard and center grouping. Smith, Humphrey, and guard Joe Thuney have been protecting Patrick Mahomes in the majority of his appearances since the 2021 campaign. Thuney is the only one who’s run into any injury issues, and even then, he’s only missed four total games (regular season and playoffs) over that span.

Chiefs Sign Second-Round C Creed Humphrey

May 13th, 2021 at 6:33pm CST by Ben Levine

After completing a deal with their No. 58 pick earlier today, the Chiefs have now signed No. 63. The team announced that they’ve signed center Creed Humphrey to his rookie pact.

The six-foot-five, 312-pound lineman was a standout during his time at Oklahoma, earning a pair of Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year awards. After playing three years (not including a redshirt season) with the Sooners, Humphrey gave up his final year of eligibility and entered the draft. He was selected with Kansas City’s own second-round selection.

The Chiefs have been focused on revamping their offensive line this offseason, but Humphrey should have a good opportunity to start at center as a rookie. He’ll face competition from free agent addition Austin Blythe and 2020 undrafted free agent Darryl Williams.

The Chiefs have been active today, signing all of their draft picks and acquiring Mike Hughes from the Vikings. The team also announced that they’ve added eight undrafted free agents: