Tyrann Mathieu will in all likelihood be playing somewhere other than Kansas City in 2022. After a three-season stretch with the Chiefs where he was one of the main faces of a defense that went to two Super Bowls and hoisted one Lombardi Trophy, the franchise has seemingly moved on this offseason.
With Mathieu hitting free agency, Kansas City didn't re-sign him and instead brought in his replacement in fellow safety Justin Reid, inking him to a three-year contract. That signaled that Mathieu's time in K.C. was done.
"Bro, I was depressed," Mathieu told The Kansas City Star in an exclusive interview. "Heartbroken. Heart. Broken. I could not understand it. I could not, man."
This appears to be a one-sided divorce between Mathieu and Chiefs with the team initiating the separation. The 29-year-old wanted to stay with the team he had spent the last three seasons with, but they did not offer him a contract.
While Mathieu once was made the highest-paid safety in the NFL by Kanas City, he admits that he would have ultimately opted for a pay cut and accepted a deal that mirrors the three-year, $31.5 million contract ($20 million guaranteed) that Reid signed. Over his three-year deal with the Chiefs, Mathieu had an average annual salary of $14 million. Reid currently has an AAV of $10.5 million.
"To be honest," Mathieu said, "if they would've offered me Justin Reid's deal, obviously I would've tried to negotiate, but if that's where they drew their line in the sand, I probably would've took it. I probably would've took it. Agents are going to do their thing, but at the end of the day, it's the player's decision whether to sign it or not."
In the aftermath of the Chiefs signing Reid, Mathieu's market has recently started to heat up. He visited with the New Orleans Saints this week and had a virtual visit with the Philadelphia Eagles, who are said to be interested in adding the three-time Pro Bowler to their secondary.
