After falling short of their Super Bowl goals, the Kansas City Chiefs will look to make some changes in the offseason. Amid the roster turnover, some players will be let go in order to open up some cap space for the team.

The first of those moves came on Tuesday when the Chiefs announced their decision to release veteran linebacker Anthony Hitchens. Coach Andy Reid personally thanked Hitchens in the Chiefs' press release, calling the 29-year-old a “team-first player.”

“I really enjoyed the opportunity to coach Anthony over the last four years. He's as tough as they come in this league and is a team-first player. I appreciate the way he came to work, ready to do his part, but also his willingness to teach the younger guys around him.”

 

Hitchens signed a five-year, $45 million contract with the Chiefs in 2018, which was due to expire after the 2022 season. He was set to register a cap hit of $12.6 million in 2022, but the Chiefs will save $8.4 million by cutting him, as he carried just a $4.2 million dead cap hit.

While Hitchens was a four-year starter, and a solid one at that, during his tenure with the Chiefs, his production couldn't justify that type of price tag, resulting in the team parting ways with him a year in advance.

In 2021, Hitchens featured in 15 games, starting all of them. He recorded 80 tackles, four tackles for loss, two QB hits, and two pass breakups. In all, the defensive captain appeared in 59 games for the Chiefs over the past four seasons, winning a Super Bowl ring in 2019.