The Kansas City Chiefs are reversing course on a recent decision, reuniting with one of their own players who recently became a free agent.
The Chiefs opted against tendering Restricted Free Agent OL Mike Caliendo a contract offer, which meant that the former undrafted free agent out of Western Michigan became an unrestricted free agent on March 11. Well, that didn’t last too long.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Chiefs are set to re-sign Caliendo on a one-year deal. Fowler says that Caliendo had several other offers elsewhere that he turned down because he wanted to stay in Kansas City. Fowler seems to suggest that this is viewed as a depth move as Caliendo provides positional versatility on the offensive line.
“Caliendo has played 700+ snaps for Chiefs offense the last few years, including Super Bowl LVIII,” Fowler wrote. “Gives K.C. flexibility along the line.”
This move will return the entire team’s offensive line from the 2025 season, except for RT Jawaan Taylor, who was released and remains a free agent.
The good and the bad of the Chiefs’ decision to re-sign Mike Caliendo
There’s some nuance to this re-signing for Kansas City, where you’ve got to take the good along with the bad.
The good: They’re getting Caliendo at a discount. Had they tendered him a contract, they would’ve owed him $3.52 million in salary. This deal with the Chiefs is likely low on guaranteed money and closer to the league minimum than to that amount. That likely means there is more flexibility to move on from him during the team’s 53-man roster cuts ahead of the season
The bad: Caliendo could once again body block promising younger players like Hunter Nourzad and C.J. Hanson from meaningful snaps and playing time. He’s been the guy standing in the way of those two contributing over the past two seasons. Going into Year 3, both of those players should be getting consideration ahead of Caliendo.
The good: You can never have too much depth in this league at any position. Having another player who knows the Chiefs’ system, has started important games, and is trusted by the coaching staff is rarely a bad thing. You never know when an injury is going to strike, and you’re going to need that type of depth.
The bad: Caliendo just isn’t a particularly good player, especially as a pass blocker. He’s mostly held his own as a run-blocker, but Kansas City has a pretty good sample size now. He’s allowed 40 pressures, 5 sacks, and 5 penalties in 555 pass-blocking snaps across his career per PFF.
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This story was originally published by A to Z Sports on Mar 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.