The Chiefs’ Biggest Offseason Deal Stands on the Sideline

The most notable free agent for the Super Bowl LVIII champion Chiefs isn’t any player but instead head coach Andy Reid. And he isn’t even really a free agent. 

Now a three-time Super Bowl winner and an NFL head coach since 1999, Reid is entering the fifth year of a six-year contract signed after the Chiefs’ LIV win in early 2020. Reportedly paying about $12 million per year, Reid’s contract is increasingly out of step with current NFL trends, particularly as the Chargers recently hired Jim Harbaugh, who is slated to earn $16 million per year. 

Elsewhere in the AFC West, Broncos coach Sean Payton also is paid more than Reid, with an annual salary of about $18 million, and other NFL coaches reportedly earning more than Reid include the Steelers’ Mike Tomlin ($12.5 million) and the Rams’ Sean McVay ($14 million).

Set to turn 66 next month, Reid had been the subject of growing retirement rumors. But following Sunday night’s game, Reid said he intended to return in pursuit of a three-peat that has never been achieved in the NFL’s Super Bowl era. 

“Yeah—I haven’t had time to think about it, but yeah, yeah,” Reid said when asked about his return for the 2024 season. (Reid confirmed on Monday: He’ll be back.)

Chiefs owner Clark Hunt reiterated the sentiment, telling the NFL Network that “I expect Andy to be back next year as we go for the three-peat.”

That return, however, will likely result in a contract extension or renegotiation as Reid has placed himself in a highly elite group of coaches in NFL history. Now, with three Super Bowl wins, Reid joins only Bill Belichick, Joe Gibbs, Chuck Noll, and Bill Walsh with at least that many.

A pay bump will increasingly be in Kansas City’s financial wherewithal, as the franchise is set for an additional elevation in value with the latest Super Bowl win. It is also poised for further increases in key local revenue lines such as tickets, sponsorships, and merchandise. The Chiefs’ star quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, is already locked in to the richest player contract in NFL history.