With the Buffalo Bills dominating the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first half of their Wild Card Weekend matchup, many began to look ahead. Specifically, the focus was on the Kansas City Chiefs traveling to Orchard Park for the Divisional Round. As it turns out, fans, media and national analysts alike weren't the only ones peering into the crystal ball.
In a tweet posted to his X (formerly Twitter) account on Monday afternoon, Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay Jr. shared some thoughts. Indicating that it looks like he's "probably" played his final game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, the fourth-year man added that he'll "miss" playing in front of the home crowd.
The tweet was sent from a relatively new account, one Gay created back in December.
It’s looking like Ive probably played my last game in arrowhead. Damn im going to miss that place. Nothing like it❤️ lets go get this Ring to end it the right way
While Gay's tweet partially implies that the Chiefs won't have another home game for the rest of the playoffs, it isn't a foregone conclusion. If they get past Buffalo, a Houston Texans win over the Baltimore Ravens would put the AFC Championship Game back in Kansas City. Weirder things have happened, so the team may get another chance to host a postseason game this year. Gay is hopeful that Houston can knock off Baltimore and make that happen.
The real takeaways from the tweet, however, pertains to Gay's long-term future with the franchise. Currently wrapping up the final year of his rookie contract, he's set to hit the free agent market in the spring. The tone of his post hints at an expectation that he won't return for the 2024-25 campaign. Spotrac currently values him at a market value of four years and just over $28 million, an average annual mark of $7M. Even if that isn't his actual market, perhaps the team doesn't have significant interest in retaining him.
A second-round pick back in 2020, Gay has played in 57 regular-season games for the Chiefs. In those contests, the former Mississippi State standout has 233 tackles (17 for loss) with 19 passes defended, five sacks, four fumble recoveries and four interceptions. He most recently played 23 snaps in Saturday's playoff win over the Miami Dolphins, logging a pair of tackles in the process.
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