No one will say that it is a done deal because teams and players are surely abiding by the league’s ban on striking such deals during the three-day negotiating window ahead of free agency, but the signs point to the Chiefs landing wide receiver Jeremy Maclin as a free agent.
Among those signs are the multiple reports that linebacker Tamba Hali has agreed to rework his contract as the team finds the cap space needed to bring Maclin into the fold. Hali was set to make $9 million in salary and bonuses this year while counting $12 million against the salary cap, numbers that made him an obvious target with the team using the franchise tag on Justin Houston a year after drafting Dee Ford in the first round.
It’s not clear how Hali has altered the final year of his deal, but a straight pay cut probably makes the most sense for the Chiefs at the moment.
Hali might not be the only current Chief addressing his contract as part of the effort to attract future Chiefs. Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe is set to make $11 million in 2015 and there have been reports that the team will cut him if they can’t find a team willing to make a trade.
