Report: Chiefs sign safety Will Parks to a one-year deal

According to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Kansas City Chiefs are signing veteran safety Will Parks to a one-year contract worth up to $1.13 million.

The transaction unofficially puts the Chiefs at 90 players on their roster — the maximum amount they can bring to training camp in July.

Parks will be 27 years old in July. He has played five seasons in the NFL; he was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL Draft and remained on the team through the remainder of his rookie contract. As an unrestricted free agent in the 2020 offseason, Parks signed a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. He played in six games for them before the team released him following their Week 12 contest. He was claimed off waivers by the Broncos for the remainder of the season.

The 6-foot-1, 194-pound safety recorded 31 tackles, three tackles for loss and a sack in 2020. For his career, he’s totaled four interceptions, 13 passes defended, two forced fumbles, seven tackles for loss, and two sacks. His best statistical season came in 2018, when Parks nabbed an interception, defended four passes, forced a fumble and totaled 41 tackles.

In 2020, he played 314 defensive snaps and 74 special teams snaps. He saw a season-high 81% of his Broncos’ defensive snaps in Week 13 against the Carolina Panthers. For special teams, he saw a season-high 72% of the Eagles’ snaps in Week 11 against the Seattle Seahawks.

The newest member of the Chiefs’ secondary should provide a solid depth option as a third or fourth safety. He would currently be joining a safety group of Tyrann Mathieu, Juan Thornhill, Dan Sorensen and Rodney Clemons — a second-year player on a reserve/future deal.