On Tuesday afternoon, all 32 clubs of the National Football League are at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis for the opening day of the 2022 Scouting Combine to begin assessing the newest crop of talent to reach the professional level. But trying the find the diamonds in the rough is just one of the tasks on the plates of GM Brett Veach and head coach Andy Reid.
There are more extensive to-do’s on the Chiefs’ offseason list. One of those is making sure safety Tyrann Mathieu stays in Kansas City for the long haul. Mathieu’s three-year, $42 million contract signed in 2019 expires as soon as the unrestricted free agency begins on March 16.
Veach and Reid were both asked by reporters about the progress in retaining the All-Pro safety. Veach said that one of his primary goals during Combine Weeks is to speak to the representatives of all of Kansas City’s free agents.
“If their agents are here, we always make it a point to grab a dinner or just catch them in between workouts or what-have-you,” explained Veach. “That goes with all the players on our roster from one down to 53. It’s always good to keep those communications and the dialog open. So we’ll certainly do that with Tyrann and his people.”
Veach previously explained he and Mathieu’s reps agreed to restart contract talks at the end of the 2021 season. That time has finally come.
“This is actually the start of that process now,” he said. “Once the season ends, the coaches do their deal. We sit back and collect all the information [and] we get with the coaches after they go through their scheme evaluations. We know that once Indy rolls around, on one hand, we’ll have a chance to see all the great college prospects, but on the other hand, we’ll have an opportunity to talk with our players’ agents and exchange information. So we’ll start that process this week, and hopefully, everything ends in a positive direction.”
Mathieu has played an essential role in Kansas City’s defense over the last three seasons. Since signing with the Chiefs, he’s been named a First-Team All-Pro twice, received two Pro Bowl nods, and won a Super Bowl ring. In 47 starts, Mathieu registered 213 tackles (171 solo), three sacks, 13 interceptions, and two pick-sixes.
In the end, Veach and Reid made it very clear how much they’d love for Mathieu to remain in Kansas City.
“After the Cincinnati game, we had a chance to talk,” said Veach. “We communicated that we certainly love Tyrann — and Tyrann loves being here.”
“We love Tyrann, so it’s a matter of how that all fits in,” maintained Reid. “Again… Brett [Veach] has to juggle all that. We’ll see where it goes as we go in the future here. But we all love [Mathieu]. I think that’s important.”
