Former Kansas City Chiefs second-round draft pick and starting safety Juan Thornhill is being released ahead of NFL free agency, according to NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo.

“The [Cleveland] Browns are releasing veteran S Juan Thornhill, sources say,” Garafolo reported on February 24, explaining: “The team and Thornhill’s camp spoke in recent days and the decision was made to part ways now, giving Thornhill a few weeks before free agency to find his next home. Thornhill had one year at $7m left on his deal.”

Thornhill cashed out on a $21 million contract (paying $7 million per year) with the Browns in 2023, following the Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. The former 58-game starter of Kansas City (including playoffs) earned exactly $14 million of his deal in Cleveland, but the signing didn’t really work out overall.

Brought in for his ability as a ball hawk and gamechanger in coverage, Thornhill registered zero interceptions with the Browns after picking off 8 passes with KC. His lone career forced fumble occurred as a member of the Chiefs as well.

Thornhill also dealt with injuries the past two years, logging just 11 starts in each of his seasons in Cleveland — plus 1 playoff start. If you look at Thornhill’s marks on Pro Football Focus, he wasn’t a bad player with the Browns, but he did fail to make a clear impact.

Considering his salary and the Browns’ financial situation, that was enough for them to move on after two seasons.

Where Will Former Chiefs & Browns Safety Juan Thornhill End up in 2025?

Thornhill will now join a free agent safety pool headlined by veterans like Marcus Williams, Justin Simmons, Jeremy Chinn and more recent Chiefs Super Bowl champion Justin Reid.

Even with Reid potentially cashing in this spring, similar to Thornhill in 2023, don’t necessarily expect a KC reunion. The former second rounder might have interest, and the Chiefs are never opposed to bringing back someone that knows their system, but Kansas City will also be spending on a strict budget this offseason — and safety is not an area of need.

The Chiefs have rebuilt their safety room through the draft and appear well-stocked behind Reid. It’s one of the main reasons the veteran team leader may have already said his goodbyes.

With that in mind, there’s no real need for KC to pursue Thornhill, assuming he’s not willing to re-sign on the cheap.

Kansas City currently has youngsters like Bryan Cook, Jaden Hicks, Christian Roland-Wallace and nickel specialist Chamarri Conner as potential options at safety. They also re-signed practice squad defensive backs Deon Bush, Darius Rush and Eric Scott Jr. to very affordable reserve/future contracts after the postseason run ended this winter.

That all points to Thornhill signing elsewhere in 2025, although one can never rule out KC targeting an ex-player if the price is right.

Chiefs Reporters Expect Justin Reid to Test the Market & Leave KC in NFL Free Agency

During the February 23 edition of the “41 is the Mic” podcast with KC beat reporters Matt Derrick (Chiefs Digest) and Nick Jacobs (KSHB 41), both media members settled on the fact that Reid is likely the odd man out in free agency — and will end up signing elsewhere.

“This is kind of like the last big payday [opportunity] for him in [the] secondary before he’s going to have to make a decision on when he wants to stop playing,” Jacobs acknowledged while speaking about Reid’s chances of returning.

Jacobs also noted that he felt Reid lost a step in 2024 after battling through a quad injury.

Similarly, Derrick agreed, pointing out that if you have to choose between re-signing Reid or linebacker Nick Bolton, the Chiefs have to target the younger of the two (which is Bolton).

Cook also needs a new deal in 2026, so a decision to let Reid walk in free agency could be a long-term choice as much as it is a short-term one — as Kansas City moves forward with Cook and Hicks as their starting safety duo of the future.