The Kansas City Chiefs have begun the process of digging out of their salary cap space.
The Chiefs turned $54.45 million of Patrick Mahomes’ 2026 salary into a signing bonus, creating $43.56 million in cap room, NFL Networks insider Tom Pelissero reported Wednesday.
Over The Cap’s Jason Fitzgerald first reported on the cap.
A simple restructuring turns the payments into a prorated signing bonus spread over the remaining years of the contract, allowing teams to push cap hits into future years.
Mahomes, who is rehabbing from a season-ending knee injury, was slated to count $78.214 million against the salary cap in 2026. The restructuring drops that figure to a much more manageable $34.65 million. The move adds a shade under $11 million to all subsequent seasons. The QB’s cap hit in 2027 is now $85.25 million. Over the past few seasons, the Chiefs have moved money up to keep the star draft pick in line with their high-profile peers. With that huge cap number expanding in 2027, we’re getting closer to a complete rework of Mahomes’ contract.
The quarterback signed a massive 10-year, $450 million contract in July 2020. The deal was made to give the Chiefs flexibility throughout the deal. Restructuring the charter to push money into the coming year was always part of the plan.