Four reasons why Chiefs must sign Orlando Brown long term

The Kansas City Chiefs are kinda, sorta backed into a corner when it comes to signing left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. to a new contract.

While the majority of NFL teams have checked the single biggest items off of their offseason to-do lists earlier this spring, a few major projects still remain in place for a handful of teams dealing with long-term contract extensions. That’s a list that includes the Kansas City Chiefs and their likely decision to lock up Orlando Brown Jr. for years to come.

At this point, the Chiefs have stated that they’re going to get something done and that it’s only a matter of time. For a long stretch, the reported hold-up to a long-term deal between the Chiefs and their left tackle was the lack of an agent on Brown’s part, but that was recently taken care of with the hire of Michael Portner.

Brown doesn’t sound like he’s even remotely worried about the other side getting cold feet. At this stage, he knows he’s an essential addition to this roster for the long term. While the price might have gotten too high for others like Tyreek Hill or Tyrann Mathieu, Brown says he’s “very confident” it will happen.

Why should Brown feel that way? The Chiefs are essentially backed into a corner but given the parameters, that’s not the worst place to be here. Here’s why the Chiefs simply must sign Brown to a long-term contract, beginning with a new-look division.

The West demands it

For a few weeks in free agency, the frustration level in Chiefs Kingdom was riding pretty high given the number of moves being made by the team’s divisional rivals in the AFC West. Yes, the Chiefs have dominated the West in historical fashion over the last several years, with an NFL record six consecutive division titles to their credit. However, the West has never looked this competitive—perhaps ever—after such a shocking offseason.

Not only are the Chiefs looking more vulnerable than ever as they transition to a much younger and more balanced roster, but their opponents have never looked so solid. Contenders like the Chargers made significant moves, but even those used to feeding at the bottom of the standings went all-in this spring in hopes of upsetting the pecking order.

This relates specifically to Brown because the quality (and quantity) of exceptional pass rushers in the division doubled this offseason. The Las Vegas Raiders added Chandler Jones across from Maxx Crosby. The Denver Broncos brought in Randy Gregory after trading away Von Miller in the middle of last season, and he’s now paired with Bradley Chubb in the Mile High City. The Chargers traded for Khalil Mack to work in tandem with Joey Bosa.

These aren’t the only moves as each team also made other notable transactions to improve their rosters, but when it comes to Brown, the AFC West is now making significant demands of offensive tackles. The Chiefs are going to need as much help as they can outside to maintain divisional supremacy, and it’s just one reason why the Chiefs need to extend him.

Now onto perhaps the most important reason.