Chiefs Unlikely To Lose Staffers To Colts
- Although Chris Ballard left Kansas City to become the Colts‘ new general manager, Chiefs GM John Dorsey doesn’t expect Ballard to poach any KC staffers “right now,” tweets Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. Typically, an executive will try to bring at least a few low-level front office employees along to a new job, but it sounds like Ballard will be starting from scratch, and rolling with the incumbent Indianapolis staff for the time being.
Latest On Chiefs’ Talks With Berry, Poe
The Chiefs hold two of the highest-profile pending free agents in Eric Berry and Dontari Poe, but the team is discussing new deals with both defenders, John Dorsey said Thursday (via Dave Skretta of the Associated Press). Dorsey confirmed dialogue’s commenced between the team and the respective camps of Berry and Poe, describing the discussions with the nose tackle’s camp as “good conversations” while elaborating further on Berry.
“First off, I think Eric Berry had a fantastic season. Everybody within this organization, the community, has the utmost respect for that guy,” Dorsey said. “We’ve had very positive conversations with his representatives … Hopefully two sides can come together and mesh this thing out.”
Berry’s agent, Chad Speck, confirmed the Chiefs and the the All-Pro safety are talking. But he stopped short of saying the talks are positive, noting (on Twitter) the parties have “a long way to go.” Berry, 28, will enter his eighth season in 2017 and said recently he will not play it on the franchise tag as he did in 2016. It would cost the Chiefs nearly $13MM to franchise Berry again, and that would directly cut into their funding for a Poe re-up.
The Chiefs and Poe could not come to terms on an extension before last season, and word coming out of Kansas City in December indicated a future with Poe on the tag and Berry being signed to a long-term deal. The Dorsey regime is not usually vocal about contract discussions, so little emerging from the sides’ progress is not uncommon. A Poe tag is projected to cost the Chiefs $13.468MM. He has not made it known at this point if the tag is a non-starter like Berry, but that doesn’t seem likely since the $13MM-plus value would more than double his 2016 salary on the fifth-year option. The Chiefs stand to possess less than $4MM in cap space, but the franchise can create more than $17MM more by cutting Nick Foles and Jamaal Charles.
While Berry reaching the market would represent major news, the 26-year-old Poe resides as one of multiple impact 3-4 tackles in this class. Although, the Panthers are likely to place the franchise tag on Kawann Short and the Ravens have been open about their desire to keep Brandon Williams.
[RELATED: Chiefs’ Top 3 Offseason Needs]
Dorsey also attempted to quiet noise about a potential Packers future. He’s signed through 2017, but Skretta notes that is the last year of his Chiefs contract. The team wants to extend he and Andy Reid, also in the final year of his deal, but rumors about a Dorsey return to Green Bay have cropped up at multiple points this offseason.
“From my family’s perspective and mine, this has been the greatest four years of my life. I love this city, I love this team, I love this community. I think this is one of the most stable franchises in the NFL,” Dorsey said. “I love coming to work every day. I don’t know what more I can say.”
Chiefs Add Mike Kafka, Rod Wilson To Coaching Staff
- Former quarterback Mike Kafka has been hired by the Chiefs as an offensive quality control coach, reports ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). The 29-year-old spent six years in the NFL after being selected by the Eagles in the fourth round of the 2010 draft, as he has an obvious connection with current Kansas City (and former Philadelphia) head coach Andy Reid. Kafka spent the 2016 season serving as an offensive graduate assistant with Northwestern, his former college.
- The Chiefs have also hired Rod Wilson as their new assistant special teams coach, reports Terez A. Paylor of The Kansas City Star (via Twitter). The former NFL linebacker will be replacing Brock Olivo, who was hired as the Broncos special teams coordinator earlier this offseason. The 2005 seventh-round pick spent six years in the NFL with the Bears, Buccaneers, and Jaguars.
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2017 NFL Draft Order Set
With the Super Bowl in the rear view mirror, the offseason is officially underway for all 32 teams. We now have the complete draft order for the entire first round, with one exception which is noted below.
The Patriots, of course, will have the honor of having the last pick. The Falcons, after losing in heartbreaking fashion, will have the penultimate selection in the first round.
Here is the complete order, via ESPN.com’s Field Yates (Twitter links):
1. Browns
2. 49ers
3. Bears
4. Jaguars
5. Titans
6. Jets
7. Chargers
8. Panthers
9. Bengals
10. Bills
11. Saints
12. Browns
13. Cardinals
T-14. Eagles (via the Vikings)
T-14. Colts (Note: The Vikings and Colts have identical records and the same strength of schedule. The tie will be broke by coin flip with the winner getting pick No. 14 and the other team getting the No. 15 pick.)
16. Ravens
17. Redskins
18. Titans
19. Buccaneers
20. Broncos
21. Lions
22. Dolphins
23. Giants
24. Raiders
25. Texans
26. Seahawks
27. Chiefs
28. Cowboys
29. Packers
30. Steelers
31. Falcons
32. Patriots
Derrick Johnson Eyeing Training Camp Return
Derrick Johnson is optimistic he’ll be ready to suit up for Chiefs training camp in July, Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star reports. The former All-Pro is coming off his second torn Achilles’ tendon in three years and will turn 35 this year. Still, the inside linebacker’s return revitalized the 2015 Kansas City defense, and the Chiefs missed his presence against the Steelers after he went down in December. Johnson plans to play out the final two years of the three-year, $21MM deal he signed last year.
“I’m trying to win the Super Bowl, so my obligation is two more years and I want to do everything I can to make an impact to help [Chiefs chairman] Clark Hunt and the people that brought me here to win a Super Bowl,” Johnson said, via Paylor. “I’m not that guy trying to hold on. I really want to make an impact. If I see I’m hurting the team, that’s when I’ll have to think like ‘OK, that’s it.”
The Chiefs held out several starters in their previous training camp, so Johnson surmounting a second Achilles malady to suit up by July could be pushing it.
- The Chiefs are looking to upgrade at quarterback after a loss in the divisional round for a second straight season.
Chiefs Eyeing Upgrade At Quarterback
The Chiefs have finished with a winning record in each of their four seasons with Alex Smith under center. However, the team has only made three playoff appearances, and they’ve been incapable of advancing past the divisional round. As a result, the Chiefs may be looking for a change, and there’s an obvious name that they could pursue.
NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports that the Chiefs have been looking to upgrade the quarterback position following their playoff loss to the Steelers. The writer suggests that the organization could end up going after Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.
“It was noteworthy when Andy Reid was non-committal to Alex Smith,” Rapoport said. “They’ve made a QB trade in the past, doing so for Alex Smith. They’d have to be considered someone who would be a possibility.”
The connection between Romo and the Chiefs isn’t very surprising, as Romo listed Kansas City as one of his “favored destinations” (along with the Broncos, Texans, and Cardinals). If the Chiefs did somehow acquire Romo, it’s unlikely that Smith would be part of that swap or any other trade. Rapoport notes that the Chiefs would likely cut the veteran quarterback, which would leave the organization with $7MM in dead money. The 32-year-old has two years remaining on his contract, and his 2018 cap hit is projected to be north of $20MM.
Smith threw for a career-high 3,502 passing yards this past season, but it was an otherwise typical season for the 11-year veteran. Smith’s 67.1-percent completion percentage, 15 touchdowns, and eight interceptions were generally on par with his career numbers, and the Chiefs once again ranked towards the bottom of the league in passing offense.
Of course, Smith still put up better numbers than Romo, who sat out the majority of the season with a back injury. The 36-year-old ultimately appeared in one game this season, completing three of his four pass attempts for 29 yards and one touchdown. With the organization opting to build around Dak Prescott, Rapoport notes that the veteran quarterback is open to a trade. However, the writer also reports that Romo is still considering retirement.
Chiefs Plan To Extend John Dorsey, Andy Reid
While Chiefs general manager John Dorsey and head coach Andy Reid are on track to enter contract years in 2017, chairman Clark Hunt would like to change that. Hunt is “very satisfied” with how the franchise has fared under Dorsey and Reid and will look to ink the pair to extensions this offseason, he told Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star on Friday.
“Both [John] and Andy … I would expect to sit down with them over the course of the next year and sit down and talk about an extension,” said Hunt.
It’s no surprise that the Chiefs are interested in a new deal for Reid, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported last month that the club plans to extend the 58-year-old. Reid, who coached the Eagles from 1999-2012, joined the Chiefs in advance of the 2013 season and has since helped the franchise to a 43-21 regular-season record and three playoff appearances. Kansas City has gone just 1-3 in the playoffs under Reid, though, and was one-and-done last month after winning the highly competitive AFC West with a 12-4 mark.
The postseason troubles the Chiefs have endured with Reid at the helm haven’t hurt his standing in Hunt’s eyes, however. Reid, who’s among the NFL’s highest-paid coaches at $7.5MM per year, has “done a great job,” per Hunt.
As for the front office, the Chiefs just watched well-regarded player personnel director Chris Ballard depart to become the Colts’ GM, so it’s possible their urgency to extend Dorsey and keep him from leaving has increased. Dorsey was previously with Green Bay from 2000-12 and has come up as a possibility to eventually return there to succeed his former boss, 64-year-old GM Ted Thompson. Since exiting Wisconsin in 2013 to grab the reins of a a KC team that won just two games in 2012, Dorsey has added crucial pieces like Alex Smith, Tyreek Hill, Jeremy Maclin, Travis Kelce, Eric Fisher, Spencer Ware, Dee Ford, Marcus Peters, Jaye Howard and Chris Jones, among others, to the team’s roster. In doing so, he has helped turn the Chiefs into perennial playoff contenders.
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Bills Interested In Tony Romo
The Bills have “significant” interest in Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, although Buffalo is still eyeing a future with incumbent QB Tyrod Taylor, albeit on a cheaper contract than the his current option-based deal, which would guarantee him north of $30MM.
[RELATED: Top 3 Offseason Needs — Buffalo Bills]
Romo, meanwhile, unsurprisingly prefers to land with a contending team, and it’s not clear that he views the Bills in such a light. Instead, Romo’s list of favored destinations includes the Broncos, Texans, Cardinals, and Chiefs, per La Canfora. Denver has been tossed out as a suitor for Romo before, but the general manager John Elway & Co. are reportedly more likely to target Romo as a free agent than as an acquirable asset. Houston, too, doesn’t appear to be in the running, as the Texans are more likely to draft a quarterback than pursue a veteran option.
Barriers block a potential path between Romo and Arizona/Kansas City, as well. Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer has reportedly been contemplating retirement, but the chances of his return could be buoyed by wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald‘s announcement that he’ll continue his career in 2017. The Chiefs, meanwhile, have Alex Smith under contract for the next two seasons, but could theoretically release him with a post-June 1 designation, and take on dead money charges of $3.6MM in 2017 and 2018.
Romo, hypothetically, would be a solid fit in new Buffalo offensive coordinator Rick Dennsion‘s scheme, which utilizes many of the same zone-blocking concepts deployed by the Cowboys. The Bills ranked first in rushing DVOA last season but just 19th in passing DVOA.
Eric Berry: “Definitely” Won’t Play Under Tag
Last offseason, the Chiefs were unable to strike a long-term deal with Eric Berry and they delayed things by using the franchise tag. The Chiefs could theoretically tag him again at an increased rate, but the safety says he won’t play along if that’s the route KC chooses. He says he’s “definitely not” playing on the franchise tender in 2017 (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). 
Berry earned $10.86MM on the one-year tender last year, a surprising outcome for many in the football world who looked at a long-term accord as a sure thing. Berry also dragged his feet before putting pen-to-paper, giving the impression that things were a bit frosty between the two sides. In August, ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher told PFR that he did not envision a multi-year deal for Berry and the Chiefs.
“It’s difficult to see that at this point. If the Chiefs weren’t willing to satisfy him with a long-term offer [in 2016], why would they do it [in 2017]?,” Teicher said.
This time around, it would cost the Chiefs $12.967MM to use the franchise tag for a second time. With limited cap space, the Chiefs might not be prepared to give Berry the type of accord he’s looking for. The Chiefs have the right to tag Berry twice, but Josh Norman managed to pout his way out of Carolina last year when faced with the prospect of a tag. Berry has a very different personality than Norman, but he seems equally unsatisfied with the specter of a franchise tender.
Details On James Winchester's Contract Extension
- Chiefs long snapper James Winchester‘s contract extension is a five-year, $4.45MM pact featuring $500K in guarantees and a $500K roster bonus for 2017, reports Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. Winchester can also earn $10K in workout bonuses for every year of the deal.