A reduced salary for 2020 makes receiver Sammy Watkins’ contract more tradeable. But he won’t be traded.
The revised deal that bumps Kansas City’s cap space from $177 to $5,000,177 includes a no-trade clause, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.
It’s a fair tradeoff. The Chiefs keep a key player, the key player knows his more favorable contract won’t be dumped onto a new team, the Chiefs get some cap flexibility, and Watkins gets an upside that, based on his performance, could actually result in him earning more than he was supposed to.
As Peter King noted during Friday’s PFT Live, the continuity becomes critical for the Chiefs, if (as expected) teams have no offseason programs and if teams will be expected to get up to speed quickly as the season approaches. The Chiefs will have all the key pieces of their offense back, and that will make it easier for the Chiefs to pick up where they left off.