Back on a one-year deal after betting on a flex agency, Edwards-Helaire explained why he made the decision to return to Kansas City.
The Kansas City Chiefs have made a concerted effort to retain many of their internal free agents this offseason, with running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire being one of them. The veteran is back for another season where it’s all for him, re-signing a one-year contract.
It wasn’t a free-agency lock, however, Edwards-Helaire’s resolution came less than a month after the league’s legal rigging period. His 2024-25 contract was signed, which secured him and gave Kansas City some intensity in the backfield. Though she weighed her features and saw what awaited her, Edwards-Helaire probably wouldn’t enjoy a change of scenery.
Speaking to the media on Monday, Edwards-Helaire explained why he is so pleased to be back in the second home he knew when he played football.
“KC is literally my home,” Edwards-Helaire said. I left Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where I was born and raised, and was drafted in the middle of the country, where everyone told me it was the most productive position in the world. . All I could do was settle for it. I was doing what I loved, betting on football and I’ve grown to the max in the last five years. I committed, I understood what life is all about. Buying a house, helping my mom with some things, helping my parents, it’s just a position where I feel like I’ve become a man.
“I was 20 years old, I was coming out of school not knowing what was going on and before that, I was still just a kid from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at LSU, doing what I wanted to do, which was play football. Before you know it, (with) a snap of my fingers, I was moving 12 hours away from home, so it’s literally my next post and it’s my home and I need to move on (I can still do the things I love: ride on 4 wheels. Hunting, fishing, it’s a bit like this moment of the athlete’s paradise for me and it’s even bigger that I’m here doing what I love and playing ball.
It’s been a bumpy road for Edwards-Helaire since arriving in Kansas City. Despite having more than 2,500 flex yards and roughly 20 touchdowns under his belt, he’s also struggled to stay healthy and produce relative to his draft spot. Selected 32nd overall in 2020, the former LSU star was expected to be a star component of Andy Reid’s offense. Instead of being Patrick Mahomes’ right-hand man, Edwards-Helaire has become an actor.
Despite this, Edwards-Helaire persisted and emerged on the other side. After not betting on Super Bowl LVII, he was active in the 15 most productive games of his career last regular season, then recorded 58 snaps in the playoffs. Champion, he helped himself in 2023-24 by cementing his position in a disputed team.
Aside from being at home, what made Edwards-Helare need to return to the Chiefs?His teammates, Mahomes and Travis Kelce.
“Honestly, my teammates were one of the main reasons,” Edwards-Helaire said. “With the expansion that’s happened over the last four years, I sense the offense that I’ve been on [and] the fact that Pat is guiding me in the direction of things that he sees from the quarterback’s perspective.
“And I’ve said this in several interviews, Travis. . . On a personal level, on a daily football level, he is someone who, through my side, came to take me out at my lowest point. And then when I was at my highest level, he tried to put a rocket on my back. You just have that camaraderie and, from the top, you get those things.
Heading into the 2024 NFL Draft, Kansas City has doubled its potential as a running back with Isiah Pacheco and Edwards-Helaire. There’s room for some other addition, possibly some other meeting with Jerick McKinnon, either in the draft or in free agency. Undoubtedly, this signing puts the team in a better position from an intensity standpoint, and familiarity never hurts.
For the Chiefs, it provides them with some security while maintaining decent flexibility. For Edwards-Helaire, she doesn’t want to move and stays in an environment she loves. This is really beneficial for both parties, assuming that things remain pretty much the same in terms of role. As it turns out, this can be a good thing after all.