The Kansas City Chiefs have taken early steps in preparing for the upcoming offseason by signing four free agents to Reserve/Future contracts for the 2024 season, as reported in the latest NFL transactions update. The newly acquired players include quarterback Ian Book, wide receiver Jacob Copeland, running back Hassan Hall, and pass rusher Jordan Smith.
A Reserve/Future contract entails a non-guaranteed minimum salary that becomes effective at the commencement of the new league year in March. Notably, these players are ineligible for postseason participation, and their tenure with the team beyond the signing will hinge on subsequent roster decisions made by Kansas City. Typically, at the end of the season, the Chiefs are likely to extend Reserve/Future contracts to most of their practice squad members.
Ian Book, selected by the New Orleans Saints from Notre Dame in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft (133rd overall), started one game in his rookie season amid the challenges posed by the COVID pandemic. After being waived by the Saints before the 2022 season, Book was claimed by the Philadelphia Eagles on waivers. In 2023, he briefly joined the New England Patriots’ practice squad.
Jordan Smith, a 2021 fourth-round pick (121st overall) from Alabama-Birmingham, was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, he only played in two games during his rookie year and missed the entire 2022 season due to a knee injury. Notably, Smith had Joe Cullen, Kansas City’s defensive line coach, as his defensive coordinator during his first season in Jacksonville.
These players' salaries will count against the Chiefs 2024 cap until there are 51 players signed for next season with higher figures.
QB Book and DE Smith $985K
WR Copeland and RB Hall $795K https://t.co/Dax19fJCij— Jared Sapp (@TrumanChief) January 11, 2024
Jacob Copeland and Hassan Hall, undrafted free agents entering the league this season from Maryland and Georgia Tech, respectively, initially joined the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns. Both players experienced stints on various practice squads throughout the season after not making their initial rosters.
During a preseason finale against the Chiefs, Hall, while with the Browns, gained three yards on three rushing attempts. As the Chiefs currently lack 51 signed players for the next season, the 2024 minimum salaries for Book and Smith, each with two accrued seasons, will be $985,000, while Copeland and Hall, with no NFL game experience, will have minimum salaries of $795,000.
These recent signings will have a temporary impact on the Chiefs’ 2024 salary cap space, reducing it by an estimated $3.6 million.
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