This morning the Kansas City Chiefs placed an original-round tender on kicker Cairo Santos. What does this mean for both sides?
A tender is the name given to a qualifying offer made to a team’s restricted free agent. There are three types of tenders: first-round, second-round and original-round. With each tender the team offers to pay a set amount that declines with each type of tender. If another team offers that player a contract the current team can either match the offer or let him go to the other team.
When the player goes to the other team, that team gives the original team compensation based on the tender. If it was a first or second-round tender, than the team would receive the team’s first or second round pick. If the tender is an original-round tender then the compensation would be equal to the player’s original draft position. That means if the player was a fifth round pick the team gets a fifth round pick; if the player went undrafted then the team receives nothing.
The Chiefs offered Santos the tender because they want to keep him. In his short time in Kansas City, he’s been the most successful kicker in the team’s history. He has the best field goal percentage of any Chiefs kicker at 84.3%. He tied an NFL record with seven successful field goals in one game against the Cincinnati Bengals in 2015. He’s got one of the strongest legs in team history as he’s on pace to kick more 50+ yard field goals than the great Nick Lowery.
Not only are his stats impressive, but he’s proven he can make the kicks when they matters most. He posted two game-winning kicks this past season, including the unforgettable one against the Denver Broncos that will forever be known as “The Doink”. In three playoff games, Santos is a perfect 6 for 6 on field goals and 6 for 6 on extra points.
All of this adds up to the Chiefs needing to keep Santos on the team.