The Kansas City Chiefs have decided to undergo a pretty extensive— but not complete — transformation despite winning back to back division titles. The latest piece of the change came Monday when they decided to let safety Ron Parker go. The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport broke the news.
The #Chiefs are releasing S Ron Parker today, source said. He ended up with 9 picks, 7 sacks, 40 pass breakups. 64 of 65 regular season starts.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 12, 2018
After bouncing around between four teams in his first two seasons in the league, Parker found a home in Kansas City after he was claimed on waivers. He played every single regular-season game for the Chiefs in his five years with the team, including 63 out of a possible 64 starts over the last four seasons.
They thought enough of his contributions over the next couple of seasons to sign him to a five-year, $25 million contract in 2015. His stats have dipped a little over the last couple of seasons, but the change has not been drastic.
More than likely, the Chiefs are trying to get younger. Cutting the 30-year-old Parker will give the Chiefs about $5 million in cap relief. But cutting him and trading cornerback Marcus Peters doesn’t leave Eric Berry with much help in the Chiefs secondary.
With the team also dumping linebacker Derrick Johnson and trading quarterback Alex Smith, it is clear the franchise is looking to shake things up. But what the front office may need to ask is whether the issue keeping the Chiefs from advancing in the playoffs is on the field or on the sideline.
Andy Reid did his best work back when he first started out with the Philadelphia Eagles, from 2000 to 2004. Since then he’s guided his team to one Conference Championship, three divisional round appearances, and four wild-card losses.
Shaking up the roster can make a difference. But the Chiefs better have a plan for replacing all the lost production.
Follow Us
Subscribe