Kansas City Chiefs expected to use franchise tag on Eric Berry
By Luke Norris
The Kansas City Chiefs are expected to use their franchise tag on Eric Berry and he’s not happy about it.
NFL teams have until Wednesday to use their franchise tag and ESPN’s Ed Werder is reporting that the Kansas City Chiefs are expected to tag All-Pro safety Eric Berry….again.
Berry, who was drafted fifth overall by the Chiefs in 2010 out of the University of Tennessee, had hopes of signing a long-term deal with Kansas City prior to last season but things didn’t quite work out. He played the 2016 campaign under the franchise tag, earning $10.8 million, and turned in the third First-Team All-Pro performance of his career with 62 tackles, four interceptions and two touchdowns.
Berry and his agent have been discussing a new deal with the Chiefs but the five-time Pro Bowler, while hopeful, doesn’t seem very confident about his long-term future and has threatened to sit out the entire 2017 season if the tag is placed on him.
Under the tag, Berry would earn close to $13 million next season but that doesn’t seem to matter to him, telling the Kansas City Star on Sunday that while he’d love to be back, he understands that the NFL is a business and he’s prepared for anything that happens.
"“I’m going to keep being patient because you never know. Last year I thought one thing and it didn’t happen. So I’m not getting my hopes up; I’m looking at it logically.”"
If a deal is reached and the Chiefs decide not to tag Berry, their other option could be defensive tackle Dontari Poe, who would likely hit free agency next month if he’s not tagged. The general consensus is that Kansas City, who doesn’t have a ton of room in cap space, probably won’t be able to keep both players. Poe posted a career-low 27 tackles and 1.5 sacks in 2016.
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