Justin Houston contract: Last need of the offseason?
Nov 16, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker Justin Houston (50) celebrates after the Chiefs stopped the Seattle Seahawks on fourth down in the second half at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City won the game 24-20. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
Does this offseason feel weird to you? Does it seem like something is missing?
As I see it right now, there is only one real need for the Chiefs — Justin Houston’s contract.
For as many positives as this offseason has brought, Houston’s contract (or lack thereof) has been the constant elephant in the room. It was no surprise that he was given the franchise tag, basically equating to a one-year, $13.1 million, fully guaranteed deal. It was a little surprising that it was a non-exclusive tag, and a bigger surprise to hear that Houston intended to “aggressively pursue” offer sheets from other teams.
That rhetoric provided fans with a scare, but quickly abated as we learned the cost of another team signing Houston would be two, first-round picks in consecutive years. But even though no other team willingly ponied up the sizable cap hit and draft picks it would take to sign him, the Chiefs aren’t out of the woods yet.
The talk about “aggressively pursuing” other options may have been fueled by agent speak. But Houston being disgruntled about being given a franchise tag was probably not.
If you look at Houston’s page on Rotoworld, there is an almost eerie lack of activity. This time of the year usually isn’t the busiest for player profile pages, but when you are talking about an elite pass-rusher who is the anchor of a team’s defense, you might expect a little more.
The Chiefs did not open talks with Houston until April 24, and there has been no update (at least that I have seen) in the intervening month. The fact that no contract has been completed yet is not shocking. No. 50 wants to be paid like the All-Pro that he is, and is not going to make the negotiations easy. That is not a problem … yet.
Next: When might we see Houston again?