Kansas City Chiefs bring back one of their longest-tenured players before 2026 NFL free agency period begins

The Kansas City Chiefs have brought back LS James Winchester for a 12th season.

Charles Goldman — NFL Managing Editor
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The Kansas City Chiefs are officially bringing back long snapper James Winchester for a 12th season. He’s the longest-tenured player with the club, as things currently stand, until they officially bring back Travis Kelce.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Chiefs have signed Winchester to a one-year, $1.75 million deal that is fully guaranteed. It’ll officially keep his standing as the highest-paid long snapper in the league. The now 36-year-old Winchester first won the starting job in Kansas City after a training camp battle in 2015, and he’s been the team’s starter ever since. He’ll be 37 when the 2026 NFL season begins. His longevity and the secret to it are proving to be quite useful for the Chiefs.

Winchester is one of just four players currently on the 90-man offseason roster for all three of Kansas City’s recent Super Bowl victories, joining the likes of QB Patrick Mahomes, K Harrison Butker, and DT Chris Jones. He’s also tied with Kelce for most postseason appearances in franchise history, playing in 25 career games.

This was an expected move from Kansas City, but it does come with an apparent downside.

Chiefs will now have one of the most expensive special teams units in the NFL

The Chiefs already had the 10th-highest salary cap spend on special teams in the NFL, with only Harrison Butker under contract. Now, Winchester is receiving a fully guaranteed one-year deal, bringing their total salary cap spend on specialists to over $9 million. The team still has to decide whether to tender a contract to punter Matt Araiza after his second year with the team. It’s a lot of money to spend on a unit that underachieved in a big way just a season ago.

Ultimately, this felt like a point at which the Chiefs could decide to go younger and cheaper at the long snapper position. On the flipside, his performance hasn’t exactly dropped off, and he remains a leader for the club. Perhaps they wanted to best set up Butker for success and a bounce-back season after a disappointing 2025 NFL season. Sticking with a veteran like Winchester keeps some continuity in that room, no matter what is decided with Araiza.

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