Kansas City Chiefs begin OTAs without Justin Houston and Brandon Flowers
The Kansas City Chiefs kicked off their organized team activities on Tuesday, but they did so without two defensive starters from last year’s playoff team.
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Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star reports that neither outside linebacker Justin Houston and cornerback Brandon Flowers were in present for the voluntary practice.
When players aren’t in attendance for the “voluntary” offseason workouts it is more often than not related to the player being unhappy with his current contract situation and that is clearly the case for Houston who is in the final year of his rookie contract that will pay him $1.4 million this season.
Houston, 25, has started 37 games in his first three seasons since the Chief took him in the third round out of Georgia in the 2011 NFL Draft and has 21 sacks in his last 27 games over the last two seasons, including 11 in 11 games last year.
An extension is likely headed his way once the club comes to a resolution with starting quarterback Alex Smith who is in open negotiations with the team in his final year of his contract. Houston is one of the best outside linebackers in the AFC and a pass-rushing force off the edge, so it’s imperative to keep him happy and they will.
Flowers, 28, is a bit of a different story here as he was linked to a number of trade rumors earlier this offseason, but if he’s looking for more money or more years, he’s unable to find it from the Chiefs.
With two more years on his deal after the 2014 season and $5.25 million headed his way he is unlikely to receive a new deal, especially considering he posted a career-low one interception last year. Finding a trade partner would seem to be challenging for these same reasons.