The Kansas City Chiefs are expected to release defensive end Frank Clark after not being able to find common ground on a reworked contract during conversations at the NFL Combine, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.

The Chiefs and Brett Veach have some interesting salary cap decisions to make ahead of free agency, and it seems that the release of Frank Clark is one way of clearing some space.

With the Chiefs deciding to not place a second franchise tag on left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. ahead of Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET deadline, the release of Clark could have implications regarding that.

Brett Veach and the Chiefs still have until March 13 to negotiate a long-term deal with Orlando Brown Jr., and all indications are that they want to keep him despite not placing the franchise tag on him. Free agency opens on March 15, but Brown Jr. can talk to other teams on March 13 at 4 p.m. ET.

Frank Clark had been a core member of the Chiefs defense for four seasons, and spent the four seasons prior to playing with the Chiefs with the Seattle Seahawks. He is the NFL's third all-time leading postseason sack leader.

With Clark hitting the open market, teams in need of a pass rush will have him as an option to add on the open market. He is currently 29 years old.

The Chiefs had a tricky cap situation for this offseason, and releasing Clark clears $21 million in cap space for the team, according to Spotrac. On the surface, it might be surprising to some that Clark was released, but the amount that the Chiefs will save was too much to pass up.