Chiefs GM prioritizing Mahomes' deal: 'Going to be here for a long time'

The Kansas City Chiefs will have plenty of big decisions to make in the near future, which include negotiations with superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

Though general manager Brett Veach can't put up a timetable on when the Super Bowl MVP's long-term contract will be signed, he's putting those negotiations near the top of Kansas City's to-do list.

"Again, Pat is a priority," Veach said Thursday, according to James Palmer of NFL Network. "The way we look at it now, with all that is going on, we're going to have a lot of time to work with. Again, Pat, his agents Chris and Leigh Steinberg, they know that Pat is a priority.

"Pat isn't going anywhere, he's going to be here for a long time. I can never sit here and speak in definitives, so I can't say that the fifth-year (contract option) won't be an option or anything like that. It would be hard for me to see that we'd have to use that. We feel that it is a priority when you have a great player, and that great player is a priority, things get done."

Mahomes, 24, is now eligible for an extension ahead of his fourth pro season. Before signing any long-term deal, the Chiefs can also use the fifth-year option, which would retain Mahomes through 2021 while paying him the average of the 10 highest quarterback salaries that season.

Additionally, the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs are eyeing a long-term deal for defensive tackle Chris Jones, who received the franchise tag this offseason.

"We've had a lot of discussions with Chris and we have a lot of time," Veach said, according to The Athletic's Nate Taylor. "We're going to work through the draft. We know how talented Chris is. We're certainly going to work to maintain him, not just for next year but for the future."

Teams have until July 15 to sign a franchise-tagged player to a multi-year extension.

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