As Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio noted, the Kansas City Chiefs and star guard Trey Smith have until 4 p.m. ET on July 15 to come to terms on a long-term deal before Smith will be locked down for the 2025 season via the $23.4M franchise tender he signed back in March.
During a Thursday appearance on FanDuel TV’s “Up and Adams” program, Smith indicated he feels more stress about having to protect quarterback Patrick Mahomes than about what could happen during contract negotiations with the Chiefs.
“I lose sleep thinking about protecting Patrick,” Smith admitted, as shared by Nick Shook of the NFL’s website. “I know the things that I need to get better in my game to be the best protector that I can and just be an asset for my team and help my team out.”
Back in February, Adam Teicher mentioned for ESPN that NFL Next Gen Stats show Smith allowed just 1.5 sacks and committed only two penalties during the 2024 season. Additionally, Smith ranked 13th among guards with a 93.9% pass block win rate and sixth with a 75.1% run block win rate.
That said, The Athletic’s Zak Keefer pointed out that Mahomes took six sacks and was hit 11 times during Kansas City’s Super Bowl LIX loss to the Philadelphia Eagles this past February. According to Michael Silver of The Athletic, the Chiefs could have three new offensive line starters this September.
Florio suggested that Smith could want roughly $51.48M — $23.4M plus a 20% raise for the second season — in fully guaranteed money attached to a multi-year deal. Smith neither confirmed nor denied such a take, but it also seems like he would sleep just fine if he has to play on the one-year franchise tag.
“I leave it to the hands of my agents,” Smith said about his contract. “Obviously, the front office staff of the Chiefs are elite, and you know, at the end of the day, I just let them take care of it. I just have to focus on being the best version of myself, being the best football player and being prepared for training camp because St. Joe’s is around the corner.”
As of Friday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Chiefs fourth among the betting favorites at +800 odds to win Super Bowl LX in February 2026. One wonders if that could be Smith’s final game with what’s been his only NFL home since the 2021 draft.
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