The Kansas City Chiefs have figured out a way to fix their salary cap problem and keep wide receiver Sammy Watkins for the 2020 NFL season.
Watkins and the Chiefs agreed to a restructured contract for 2020 as first reported by Yahoo Sports’ Terez Paylor. The restructured deal lowers Watkins’ cap hit from $21 million to $16 million, creating roughly $5 million in salary-cap space. That just so happens to be the amount needed for the Chiefs to sign their draft class at the end of the month.
The restructured deal for Watkins also includes a very rare no-trade clause for Watkins, ensuring that he stays in Kansas City for the duration of the 2020 NFL season. The one-year deal in 2020 includes a base salary worth $9 million and is heavy on incentives, with money attached to playtime, touchdowns, playoffs and more.
Im back KC LETS GET IT..! #RUNITBACKTOUR
— King me (@sammywatkins) April 3, 2020
Just yesterday, Andy Reid spoke about the potential for a restructured contract with Watkins.
“Well, we’ll see how that goes,” Reid said. “There’s a ton of time here. We’ll see how all of that works out. Right now, he’s here. That’s the positive part. We sure like Sammy, he’s done a great job for us. And as good a player as he is, he’s even a better person. We’ve really enjoyed him being here. Other than that, I can’t really lead you on either way because Brett (Veach), that’s his area, I’m honestly not dealing with it.”
The Chiefs maintained they wanted Watkins back throughout this process and Watkins maintained he wanted to be in Kansas City. Even though they had a ton of time to work that out, they got it done early to give them some flexibility in the weeks ahead.
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