The Kansas City Chiefs haven't been the most active team during the 2024 NFL free agency period. 

They've mostly taken care of their own players, landing just two new additions in free agency. However, the moves made in free agency have spiced up the competition among several position groups heading into the 2024 NFL offseason. They've left certain players better-position for success than others. 

Here's a quick look at some of the players who leave the first week of free agency as "losers" for the Chiefs:

DTs Neil Farrell Jr. & Isaiah Buggs

In 2023, the Chiefs' interior defensive line was one of the weakest points of the defense outside of perennial star Chris Jones. 

Farrell Jr. was an early-season trade acquisition only to ride the bench most of the year. Buggs joined late in the year after being released by the Detroit Lions, which was very clearly a move made with the future in mind. At the onset of free agency, it was looking like the team might have faith in these two taking a jump in 2024. After the first wave, it looks like that was just wishful thinking.

The Chiefs re-signed veterans Mike Pennel, Derrick Nnadi, and Tershawn Wharton on one-year deals. That means Farrell Jr. and Buggs will have to beat out incumbents just to have roles in the defensive line rotation next season. We know just how difficult that is for players to do as members of Steve Spagnuolo's defense. Look no further than the Daniel Sorensen situation in the past. The veteran always tends to get preference.

Chiefs fans are winners in all of this because competition will mean the best players emerge, but Farrell Jr. and Buggs are going to have to earn it if they want to stick around. 

WRs Kadarius Toney & Skyy Moore

It's not news that Kansas City had wide receiver problems in 2024, but they've already started to correct those issues with the signing of WR Hollywood Brown. He and Rashee Rice are squarely at the top of the depth chart for Kansas City, but his addition puts that much more pressure on Toney and Moore to succeed.

Moore has seen a disappointing two-year stretch since entering the league. Toney has seen a host of problems, both injury-related and off-the-field distractions. At one point, both were viewed as players with the potential to be WR1 in K.C., but now they're fighting for their jobs.

When you consider that Brown thought he might be drafted by the Chiefs back in 2019, it adds a new layer to the situation.

“I thought I was gonna get drafted by the Chiefs when I was coming out,” Brown told reporters on Monday. “We talked about that since I’ve been here. They did a lot of work on me pre-draft. The world got a way of things coming around like that.”

Toney and Moore aren't just at risk of falling down the depth chart or losing their job in the interim. If things work out with Brown, he could quickly become a part of the team's long-term plans.

TE Matt Bushman 

A preseason standout for two consecutive years in Kansas City, Bushman could once again be pushed down the depth chart. In 2022, he suffered a clavicle injury that saw him released and later return to the roster. In 2023, he was pushed down the depth chart by the return of veteran Blake Bell. 

Bushman said MY BALL! pic.twitter.com/V5egn3dCAW

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) August 26, 2023

Now, the Chiefs' decision to sign Irv Smith Jr. has hampered his chances of making the 53-man roster. His best bet is that the Chiefs figure out their wide receiver and running back rooms and opt to carry four tight ends on the 53-man roster. Should Kansas City draft a tight end, it'd make it that much more difficult for Bushman to emerge as a playmaker for the Chiefs.

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