The Kansas City Chiefs will have plenty of options to choose from at the wide receiver position on the market in free agency this year.
One of those options, former Seattle Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett, has ties to the team and could be interested in an opportunity to finish his NFL career in Kansas City. Lockett was released on Wednesday in a salary-cap-clearing move after spending the last decade in Seattle. His release frees $17M in cap space for the Seahawks for the 2025 NFL offseason.
The former 2015 NFL draft pick out of Kansas State is a three-time All-Pro and one-time Pro Bowler with the Seahawks. In 2017, he led the league in kickoff return yards.
Lockett recorded 8,594 receiving yards and 61 touchdowns during his time with the Seahawks. In 2024, he started 14 games and played 17. He recorded 49 receptions for 600 yards and two touchdowns, his lowest production totals since early in his NFL career. Still, the receptions and yardage totals would’ve ranked third on the Chiefs during the 2024 NFL season.
Tyler Lockett’s father was a former Chiefs second-round draft pick
Wildcat fans and NFL draft fans are probably very familiar with this fact. The Chiefs drafted Tyler Lockett’s father, Kevin Lockett, in the second round (47 overall) in the 1997 NFL draft out of Kansas State. Kevin was the Wildcats’ all-time leading receiver before his son Tyler eventually surpassed him.
Kevin spent four years in Kansas City, appearing in 54 games with six career starts. He amassed 87 receptions for 1,164 yards and four receiving touchdowns. He was also the team’s punt returner for a chunk of the 2000 NFL season. Tyler became a very popular choice for the Chiefs in mock drafts in 2015, given his father’s ties to the organization. Now, they’ve got a chance to entertain bringing Tyler to Kansas City, which also isn’t too far from his hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The biggest reason that Tyler Lockett makes sense for the Chiefs
While his scheme fit is worth entertaining, his age (33 in September) is not what the Chiefs typically go for in free agency. Lockett also has something else good going for him, though.
As a recently released player, Lockett’s free to sign with a new team at any time, but he also won’t count toward the NFL’s compensatory pick formula. The Chiefs can sign Lockett and not risk losing any potential compensatory picks gained in 2026 from potentially losing players like Tershawn Wharton, Nick Bolton, Charles Omenihu, Carson Wentz, DeAndre Hopkins, Hollywood Brown, and more in free agency.
This is a year when Kansas City will have to be a bit more fickle with its free agency acquisitions to protect that future influx of draft capital. Should guys like Hollywood Brown, DeAndre Hopkins, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Justin Watson leave in free agency, Lockett would make sense as a veteran-in-the-room to pair with younger players like Xavier Worthy, Rashee Rice, and Nikko Remigio.
