This month is going to be a very busy one behind the scenes at Arrowhead Stadium as the Kansas City Chiefs begin their evaluation of the 2021 campaign and look ahead to the coming offseason. However, fans aren’t likely to see much in the way of activity this month, but there is one major move in the works before the rest: a likely contract extension for Orlando Brown Jr.
The Chiefs have a significant number of players set to hit free agency with two of them as high-profile cases: Brown and safety Tyrann Mathieu.
Heading into the offseason, general manager Brett Veach spoke to reporters this week in his post-season press conference and addressed a number of subjects.
Heading into the offseason, it was clear that Veach had one primary point of business: signing Brown to a contract extension.
#Chiefs GM Brett Veach on Orlando Brown: "He's as dependable as there is. We expect him to be our left tackle going forward."
— Aaron Ladd (@aaronladdtv) February 1, 2022
#Chiefs GM Brett Veach says the contracts of S Tyrann Mathieu and LT Orlando Brown are “at the top of the list.”
— Pete Sweeney (@pgsween) February 1, 2022
Veach says he and Mathieu’s agent decided prior to 2021 they would look at the landscape in the offseason.
Now we’re here.
Brown is scheduled to hit free agency in March along with Mathieu, so the Chiefs only have a few weeks to figure out the best way to secure the services of one or both of those players. Given Veach’s comments in his press conference, Brown was emphasized as the first order of business which means he is up first and we’re likely to hear some real action around a contract with him soon enough.
For Brown, he could make a ton of money in the free-agent market, and if he’s smart, he’ll use that leverage to his advantage. However, the Chiefs do hold the keys to his rights with a franchise tag. In the end, Brown is going to want long-term security and the Chiefs aren’t going to want to go the tag route for the long-term because that’s an expensive road to walk.
The tension between the sides will make threading this needle a bit more difficult, but the Chiefs and Brown’s representatives have been aware of this need for an extension for almost a full calendar year, so it’d be shocking if the parameters for such a deal weren’t already in place.
By all accounts, Brown seems happy in Kansas City and the Chiefs sound pleased with their investment. A deal is likely coming in the pipeline, which might be the only real activity we see transaction-wise from the Chiefs for the next few weeks.