Marquise Brown’s One-Year Deal Could Actually Help the Chiefs Long Term

While just about every other NFL team would trade places with the Kansas City Chiefs right now, the back-to-back champs do face some challenges.

The ability to restructure Patrick Mahomes’ contract does help ease the financial burden, but trying to pay big-time stars while building a deep roster requires something of a conveyor belt. As players run out their contracts and look for raises, some of them will have to be replaced by more affordable options.

This offseason, for example, Willie Gay Jr. left town. Tommy Townsend is most likely leaving too, although his new contract is yet to be confirmed. A L’Jarius Sneed trade is still possible, and that’s not even thinking about names like Donovan Smith, Mike Edwards and Mecole Hardman.

And while most of the replacements will arrive through the draft—rookies enter the league on affordable contracts, after all—the Chiefs seem to have landed at least one big-time free agent: Marquise “Hollywood” Brown.

According to early reports, the receiver will arrive in KC on a one-year deal. At the risk of predicting the future, that would probably place Brown in JuJu Smith-Schuster’s footsteps, hoping to prove his value, secure a Super Bowl ring and then land a big-time extension in 2025.

Upon first blush, that seems to make this move feel like an expedited (and expensive) version of the bigger-picture challenge the Chiefs are facing. Even if Brown steps forward as a game changer for KC’s offense, he’ll most likely be too expensive to keep around past a single season.

To be clear, no one wearing red, white and gold will be complaining if this one-year deal brings another Lombardi Trophy back to Arrowhead Stadium. But, at the same time, Brown’s short-term presence could help plant the seeds for a longer-term renewal.

If we flash back to the start of the 2023 season, the Chiefs’ offense seemed to be in disarray. Travis Kelce stood tall as the club’s one reliable pass catcher, and opposing defenses focused on locking him down. Rashee Rice was working through some growing pains, and the rest of the group (Skyy Moore, Kadarius Toney, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Justin Watson) were varying degrees of unreliable.

That created a situation where things had to be perfect. If there was a single error, whether that was a drop, a penalty or simply a negative play, it was tough for KC to dig out of the hole. Even with Mahomes under center, the margin of error was dangerously thin.

Over the course of the year, Rice’s development mitigated those issues. He proved to be a safe pair of hands and showed a knack for piling up yards after the catch. Add a respectable running game courtesy of Isiah Pacheco, and the Chiefs were able to return at least partially to form. Was it the offense of old when Tyreek Hill could turn any play into a touchdown? No, but the group was able to move the chains, chew up some clock and give the defense something to hold on to.

All that being said, let’s turn the page to 2024. As things currently stand, Kelce, Rice and Watson will remain in the mix. Moore and Toney are still on the books, but it’s tough to imagine them being meaningful pieces of the offense. Brown, of course, joins the receiving corps, and it seems likely that General Manager Brett Veach will draft another pass catcher at the end of the first round.

And through the lens of last year, it’s easy to see how Brown helps. Whether head coach Andy Reid prefers to pull him into the slot or use him as a conventional deep threat, the receiver will command plenty of attention. Opposing defenses will be back to a “pick your poison” situation—with Kelce, Rice, Brown and a capable running back all in the mix, you can’t double-cover everyone.

But what about the long-term part of the equation? Well, that requires considering any rookie receivers whom the Chiefs draft.

With the former Raven and Cardinal in the mix, there’s less need for that rookie to contribute immediately. He would be, at best, the fourth option on passing downs. Not only does that allow KC to give that prospect more time to develop—remember how Mahomes benefited from a year behind Alex Smith?—but it also provides more flexibility.

Maybe you think that speedster Xavier Worthy is a bit rough around the edges. Brown could fill that role for 2024, allowing the rookie to be a genuine contributor the following year. Or perhaps you believe that Ladd McConkey’s route running and hands make him the perfect player to pair with Mahomes, but you’re unsure if he can physically hang in the pros right now. Sliding him further down the depth chart means you can select him without needing him to contribute ASAP.

And with that extra development time, maybe the Chiefs can escape the hamster wheel a bit, at least on offense. If they head into the 2025 campaign with both Rice and another receiver able to contribute and still playing on rookie deals, there’s a bit more room to work.

Kelce, after all, will eventually need to be replaced. Perhaps the 2025 draft is the time to find his successor. Or maybe the pendulum swings away from the tight end position and KC loads up elsewhere rather than seeking a like-for-like player. Working from a position of strength, rather than trying to frantically plug a gaping hole, is always preferable.

It goes without saying that nothing is guaranteed. Skyy Moore, for example, was expected to take a step forward during his second year, but the receiver fell flat. When you’re talking about player development, it’s impossible to know exactly what the future holds.

But, right now, the Chiefs are in a unique position. Attention has to be paid to the present, but there’s also a longer-term view at play: As long as this current core is intact, you can’t completely mortgage the future.

And, as much as we can try to predict the future, adding Hollywood Brown to the mix on a one-year contract seems as if it could speak to both of those realities.