On Monday, the Kansas City Chiefs moved ever so close to the Mendoza line in regard to their 2026 salary cap. The team has parted ways with Pass Rusher Mike Danna in a significant cost-cutting move that will allow Kansas City to enter the free-agent market in March.
Kansas City Chiefs Defensive End, Mike Danna, carved out a nice career in a Chiefs uniform, but injuries leveled that early success. With a big cap number, the team released their former Pass Rusher, freeing up roughly $8.9M in cap space. As it stands now, the Chiefs are roughly $3.3 Million over the cap.
The team is expected to release Right Tackle, Jawaan Taylor, this week, and that would give the Chiefs roughly $17 Million in cap space to retain Tight End Travis Kelce, and create some modest room to add a free agent running back. Kansas City can make additional moves, most notably trading Cornerback, Trent McDuffie, before the league year opens, saving another $13.6M in cap space.
Danna ended his tenure in Kansas City with 21.5 sacks and 194 career tackles. Last April, the Chiefs drafted Ashton Gillotte to be the successor to Danna. He now moves into a starter’s role opposite George Karlaftis. However, the Chiefs are expected to add a pass rusher in the first or second round.
With a slew of injuries in his career, this was the right move for the Chiefs to make regarding Danna. It’s not certain if the Chiefs will look at a pass rusher in free agency, but it’s clear they need to upgrade the position heading into the 2026 NFL Season.
