NFL Offseason Schedule 2023: Important Chiefs Dates to Know

Let's take a look at what KC needs to do this offseason and when their deadlines are.

The Kansas City Chiefs may be the Super Bowl LVII champions, but things will soon begin picking up speed in terms of preparations for their title defense.

Kansas City's focus is now being shifted to the 2023 NFL offseason. Over the next several days, weeks and months, all 32 NFL clubs will be tasked with balancing finances, assets and roster spots to put their teams in the best positions possible to compete in the 2023-24 campaign. The league's offseason schedule has many important dates to know, and all of them are relevant to the Chiefs. 

Let's take a look at what Brett Veach, Andy Reid and company will have to do by the beginning of the preseason, as well as how long they'll have to check those items off their respective lists. 

Franchise/transition tag window opens, college scouting process ramps up

For NFL clubs looking to apply tags to their players before the legal tampering and free agency windows open, the important day to remember is Feb. 21. Starting then, teams can officially designate players with either the franchise tag or the transition tag. For the Chiefs, left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. is the player to watch. The Pro Bowl offensive lineman failed to reach an agreement with the team on a contract extension last offseason and played the 2022-23 campaign on the franchise tag. If the same process unfolds this time around, he'll make just under $20M this coming season (120% more than the previous year). 

With the 2023 NFL Draft quickly approaching, the end of March and beginning of February will feature plenty of scouting for front-office executives and team scouts across the league. Feb. 28-March 6 is when the NFL Combine is held in Indianapolis, and pro days for players at their schools start on March 7. The Chiefs, a team that is quickly building a reputation as one of the better drafting organizations in the NFL, will pay special attention to these developments as they aim to get a closer look at the league's next incoming rookie class. 

NFL's legal tampering period and new league year officially begin

Aside from the draft, free agency may be the most interesting and biggest part of the NFL offseason. Starting on March 13, the legal tampering period begins and prospective free agents are allowed to start speaking with the 31 clubs outside of their 2022-23 team. Just a couple of days later (March 15), the 2023 NFL new league year begins and the free agency period opens. Starting at 4:00 p.m. ET, chaos will ensue. 

The Chiefs don't have too crazy of a free agent class to keep an eye on this offseason, but they still have multiple key contributors who are set to hit the open market. Brown (if not tagged), JuJu Smith-Schuster, Mecole Hardman, Andrew Wylie, Carlos Dunlap, Juan Thornhill and multiple others are all unrestricted free agents who could command respectable salaries from other teams. If Kansas City doesn't want to lose them, the franchise will have to pony up. The free agency window will see some (if not all) of them get offers.

From March 26-29, the NFL's yearly league meetings will also be held. This presents an opportunity for the competition committee to vote on proposed rule changes, as well as a chance for teams' representatives to speak to the media about how they feel regarding their offseasons to that point. Additionally, with so many high-ranking team employees in the same place, it isn't out of the question to expect some other conversations to be held as well. 

Beginning of offseason workouts and the end of restricted free agency

For the Chiefs, since Reid is returning as head coach next season, they're permitted to begin their offseason program with workouts on April 17. This is two weeks after teams with new head coaches are set to begin their programs. Around this time last offseason, quarterback Patrick Mahomes hosted his receivers down in Texas for workouts during phase one of the Chiefs' program. Something similar could happen this year, as it's something that Reid and Veach both spoke highly of throughout the season.

The final stretch of April coincides with the final days of restricted free agency. April 21 is the last day of the signing period, with April 26 being the final day teams can match offer sheets to their own RFAs. For Kansas City, the team has just two of those players with that specific designation to account for this offseason: punter Tommy Townsend and pass-rusher Tershawn Wharton. Additionally, three players are exclusive rights free agents (tight end Jody Fortson, quarterback Shane Buechele and offensive tackle Prince Tega Wanogho). 

2023 NFL Draft, hosted in Kansas City

The Kansas City area was already blessed with a championship parade in February and once the end of April rolls around, the Union Station and World War I monument areas will have another major NFL event to celebrate as well. From April 27-29, the 2023 NFL Draft is slated to be held in Kansas City, MO. First-look renderings of the event were released already, and the Chiefs are slated to have double-digit selections. The exact total varies depending on where information is found and the pick slots won't be finalized until compensatory selections are awarded, but here's what Kansas City could be working with. 

The exact overall slots below are Feb. 20 estimates from the NFL Mock Draft Database: 

• Round 1: 31
• Round 2: 63
• Round 3: 95
• Round 4: 122, 134
• Round 5: 168
• Round 6: 197, 217*, 219*
• Round 7: 227, 251, 257*

Start of rookie minicamp and the 2023 NFL schedule release

Once teams draft their 2023 rookie classes, they have a choice between one of two windows to hold their minicamps for those players. From May 5-8 or May 12-15, the Chiefs will have their first-year players come in and get some of their very initial exposure to what life in the NFL is like. 

Right around the timing of that second rookie minicamp window, the 2023 NFL regular-season schedule will be released. Last season's slate was revealed on May 12, so it's a relatively safe bet to expect a similar timeline this year. For the Chiefs, they already know which teams they'll be facing at home and on the road next season. When those contests are set to occur and which of them will be prime-time battles, though, will be revealed along with the schedule announcement in real-time. 

Final deadline for franchise tags and start of training camp

The middle of July represents the deadline for teams to reach an agreement with their franchise-tagged players, and the Chiefs know all too well what that process looks like. The aforementioned Brown situation led to him sitting out of 2022 training camp for a bit after he declined the team's final contract offer, although he ended up returning to the team after a handful of days and subsequently working under the tag salary.

Chiefs training camp is one of the biggest team events of the year, as folks travel from around the country to attend something that provides some of the closest access to players that fans can get. The start of camp will be shortly after the franchise tag negotiation deadline is reached. Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, MO has been the main site of camp since 2010, and the club reached a multi-year agreement to extend that pact back in 2020 that contains options for 2023 and 2024.