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Direckshun · 08-22-2021, 06:55 AM

I just about started this topic in the Lounge, but I think we can all see the “why can’t you just enjoy this season!?!” belligerence coming from a mile away.

But since this is a forward- and longterm- looking forum, let’s talk turkey about Tyrann Matthieu.

Matthieu is an elite leader who won the team MVP in the Super Bowl season, could very well have won the league’s DPOY that year, and has been Pro Bowl caliber every year he’s been here, presuming he continues his play from his really good training camp. He can play deep, he can play in the box, he is elite in the slot, a true Swiss Army knife that allows the defense badly needed flexibility. He’s also a big part of the reason the Chiefs largely go cheap everywhere else in the secondary: his field general abilities raise the level of play of his teammates.

He’s incredibly important to re-sign, and virtually all of you know this is the last year of his contract.

But I’m getting tinges of feelings the Chiefs may let him walk after this year, and I know I’m not the only on because when I mentioned it in the training camp thread, a couple others said they felt that way too.

Given his importance and talent, it should be unthinkable to let him go.

And yet.

In this interview (I’m on my phone: https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...al-money-tight), Veach himself appears to be softening the ground for a Matthieu departure this coming offseason. While he is still committed to the guy, it’s clear that contract negotiations have royally pissed Matthieu off and the Chiefs just aren’t able at this moment to make the money work. (Of course, now that I’ve posted this, watch the Chiefs extend him tomorrow. You’re all welcome.)

Also, it bears repeating that this contract would be paying Matthieu well into his 30s, he’s likely asking for top money in the neighborhood of $17m/year give or take, and if Matthieu is exploding on Twitter about this stuff, lord knows what he’s saying in private, and the brass may not be thrilled with Badger barking for a full season to the rest of the team (and friends of his on other teams) about how the Chiefs don’t give a shit about what players have done for them. And Veach is a Mahomes-first GM, and Matthieu doesn’t play a position that directly helps Mahomes.

Veach says the team is already $30m over the cap for next year, assuming they franchise Brown, though he says they could extend Brown but they’d still be well over. He openly mentioned players moving on to open up cap space, and I think we all know Frank Clark is all but heading that way.

So in the coming offseason, the Chiefs will very likely be in a tight cap squeeze, Orlando Brown and (most critically) Tyreek Hill will be up for a contract. Cutting Frank Clark means the team may also need to make a splash at the DE position. That’s true of Matthieu too, though — there is no answer that we currently have on the roster if he walks. All told, the Chiefs are going to be in very tough spaces cap wise, as they have the fewest players under contract for next season, alongside another team or two.

What do you envision happens with Matthieu in the coming offseason?

08-22-2021, 06:55 AM	Topic Starter
Direckshun __ Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Springpatch	Mathieu’s Future I just about started this topic in the Lounge, but I think we can all see the “why can’t you just enjoy this season!?!” belligerence coming from a mile away. But since this is a forward- and longterm- looking forum, let’s talk turkey about Tyrann Matthieu. Matthieu is an elite leader who won the team MVP in the Super Bowl season, could very well have won the league’s DPOY that year, and has been Pro Bowl caliber every year he’s been here, presuming he continues his play from his really good training camp. He can play deep, he can play in the box, he is elite in the slot, a true Swiss Army knife that allows the defense badly needed flexibility. He’s also a big part of the reason the Chiefs largely go cheap everywhere else in the secondary: his field general abilities raise the level of play of his teammates. He’s incredibly important to re-sign, and virtually all of you know this is the last year of his contract. But I’m getting tinges of feelings the Chiefs may let him walk after this year, and I know I’m not the only on because when I mentioned it in the training camp thread, a couple others said they felt that way too. Given his importance and talent, it should be unthinkable to let him go. And yet. In this interview (I’m on my phone: https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...al-money-tight), Veach himself appears to be softening the ground for a Matthieu departure this coming offseason. While he is still committed to the guy, it’s clear that contract negotiations have royally pissed Matthieu off and the Chiefs just aren’t able at this moment to make the money work. (Of course, now that I’ve posted this, watch the Chiefs extend him tomorrow. You’re all welcome.) Also, it bears repeating that this contract would be paying Matthieu well into his 30s, he’s likely asking for top money in the neighborhood of $17m/year give or take, and if Matthieu is exploding on Twitter about this stuff, lord knows what he’s saying in private, and the brass may not be thrilled with Badger barking for a full season to the rest of the team (and friends of his on other teams) about how the Chiefs don’t give a shit about what players have done for them. And Veach is a Mahomes-first GM, and Matthieu doesn’t play a position that directly helps Mahomes. Veach says the team is already $30m over the cap for next year, assuming they franchise Brown, though he says they could extend Brown but they’d still be well over. He openly mentioned players moving on to open up cap space, and I think we all know Frank Clark is all but heading that way. So in the coming offseason, the Chiefs will very likely be in a tight cap squeeze, Orlando Brown and (most critically) Tyreek Hill will be up for a contract. Cutting Frank Clark means the team may also need to make a splash at the DE position. That’s true of Matthieu too, though — there is no answer that we currently have on the roster if he walks. All told, the Chiefs are going to be in very tough spaces cap wise, as they have the fewest players under contract for next season, alongside another team or two. What do you envision happens with Matthieu in the coming offseason?
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