Feb 24, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Chiefs Secure Important Consistency With Nikko Remigio

Originally posted on Kansas City Chiefs on SI
By Zak Gilbert | Last updated Mar 11, 2026 1:12 PM ET

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Chiefs might have to find some loose change in their couch to pay Harrison Butker at some point, now that Ka’imi Fairbairn eclipsed him as the league’s highest-paid kicker. But Kansas City is making other significant moves that signal the Chiefs are serious about solidifying their special teams.

For a fourth consecutive offseason, the Chiefs have committed to Nikko Remigio. An exclusive-rights free agent, Remigio signed a contract extension on Tuesday night. The news was reported by his agency, Equity Sports, which also represents Patrick Mahomes.

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Adult in the room

And that’s ironic because, other than Mahomes, Remigio might be the player Chiefs coaches trust most.

“I call him the adult in the room,” special teams coordinator Dave Toub said in October. “He's the oldest guy back there and I like having him back there, especially on kickoff returns. Because the kind of crazy balls that we're getting and the way you have to read the kickers and the kickoff coverage, and he's back there, and he does a great job on those little things that people don't really realize.”

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Mammoth returns in 2024 playoffs

People realized during the NFC playoffs this past January, when the Los Angeles Rams made critical special-teams mistakes that conspired to keep them from a Super Bowl berth. And that’s why the Chiefs want Remigio: He may not rack up touchdowns but he certainly secures the catch.

Remigio, 26, made his mark late in the 2024 season, making his NFL debut in Week 14 that year. He’s most remembered for his 41-yard punt return in the AFC championship game against Buffalo, a critical field-position flip in the Chiefs’ 32-29 victory.

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The week before in the AFC divisional playoffs, Remigio had a 63-yard kickoff return in a 23-14 win over Houston.

With five career punt returns of at least 20 yards, including a 31-yard burst in his most recent game, Dec. 21 at Tennessee, before Kansas City placed him on season-ending injured reserve with a knee injury.

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Originally signed by the Chiefs as college free agent after the 2023 draft, he spent his rookie year on injured reserve and much of his ’24 campaign on the practice squad.

In 19 career regular-season games, Remigio has averaged 8.2 yards on 36 punt returns, and 25.9 yards on 40 kickoff returns.

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A 5-9, 187-pound wide receiver out of Fresno State, Remigio is small and shifty, capable of eluding tackles in space. He has 69 yards on three career NFL catches (23.0 avg.) and one carry for 11 yards.

As a senior at Fresno State, where he played with new Chiefs quarterback Jake Haener, Remigio sparked a run to the 2022 Mountain West championship with a go-ahead touchdown reception early in the season. The catch beat San Jose State, snapping a four-game losing streak. After a 1-4 start, Remigio and the Bulldogs won their final nine games.

This article first appeared on Kansas City Chiefs on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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