Chiefs To Release CB Kaiir Elam

The Chiefs signed former first-round pick Kaiir Elam during the spring, but the cornerback will not make their roster. The team is releasing Elam, Jordan Schultz reports.

Two picks after the Chiefs chose Trent McDuffie in the 2022 draft, the rival Bills selected Elam 23rd. The move did not pan out for Buffalo, which cut the cord on Elam when it traded him to Dallas in March 2025 in a deal involving late-round picks. At the time, Elam had 29 appearances, 12 starts and two interceptions – including one off Patrick Mahomes – on his resume.

Shortly after acquiring Elam, the Cowboys made the easy decision to decline his $12.68MM fifth-year option for 2026. That set up Elam to play a contract year in 2025, and it did not go well. The Cowboys, who finished the season with the NFL’s worst-ranked pass defense, waived Elam in late November. He wrapped up his 10-game, seven-start Dallas stint with one pass breakup and no picks. Nobody claimed Elam, who hit free agency and caught on with the Titans a few days later. He wound up playing just 78 snaps in four games with Tennessee.

The Chiefs remade their cornerback group during the offseason, trading McDuffie to the Rams in a blockbuster before seeing Jaylen Watson follow him to Los Angeles. Kansas City responded by drafting Mansoor Delane sixth overall and taking a couple of relatively inexpensive free agent fliersat corner. Along with signing Elam, the Chiefs reunited with L’Jarius Sneed (briefly Elam’s teammate in Tennessee) and added Kader Kohou. The Chiefs guaranteed Elam $500K on a $1.81MM pact. They will now take on $500K in dead money with Elam’s release, but they will also open up $1.28MM in cap space.

Delane, Sneed, Kohou, Nohl Williams, Chris Roland-Wallace, Jadon Canady and Kristian Fulton are among the corners still left on the Chiefs’ roster as the cutdown deadline draws closer.