Post by MizzouTiger on Feb 22, 2008 18:45:01 GMT -5
www.kansascity.com/sports/chiefs/story/497064.html
Edwards certain Allen will play for Chiefs this season
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
The contract situation involving the Chiefs and defensive end Jared Allen has the potential to get messy, as so many of their high-profile negotiations tend to be.
For now, at least, coach Herm Edwards isn’t worrying about that. Allen almost certainly will play for the Chiefs in 2008 after they designated him as their franchise player Monday.
“He’s going to play football (for the Chiefs),” Edwards said. “That’s what’s great about my job. I don’t do contracts. I don’t have to deal with that. He’s going to be here. He will be here at the end of the day. He’s going to show up and do what he does.”
Though he is the franchise player, Allen is free to negotiate a contract with other teams. But any offer he accepts would come at a cost. The Chiefs would have the right to match the offer and retain Allen, or decline and receive two first-round draft picks as compensation for his departure.
Allen has been unavailable for comment. His agent, Ken Harris, declined comment other than to refer to Allen’s previous statement that he would not sign a long-term deal with the Chiefs if an agreement isn’t reached by the middle of July.
The Chiefs can make Allen their franchise player again next year, but at a steeper price than the $8.9 million they are obligated to offer him this season on a one-year contract.
Edwards said the Chiefs are trying to build for the long haul as opposed to patching with short-term fixes, as they’ve tended to do in other years. But the franchise designation is a short-term patch, particularly in light of Allen’s statement that the Chiefs have only a few months to sign him to a long-term deal.
Their two most recent franchise players, guard Will Shields in 2000 and tight end Tony Gonzalez in 2002, wound up getting long-term contracts from the Chiefs. But Shields had to play for the one-year offer in 2000 before getting his longer deal the next season.
“This has happened to players here before, and they ended up getting long-term deals,” Edwards said. “Will Shields went through that. Tony Gonzalez went through that. So it’s OK. Instead of arguing (with Allen), we said, ‘This is what we’re going to do, and we’ll talk about it (with Allen) later.’ We want him here, and hopefully things get worked out down the road.
“I think he wants to be here. He likes this place. He likes what we’re doing. He likes our coaching staff. He has a good relationship with all of us. We have a good relationship. We all get along. That’s what’s good about football. There’s football, and then there’s the business part. This is the business part.”
Edwards certain Allen will play for Chiefs this season
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
The contract situation involving the Chiefs and defensive end Jared Allen has the potential to get messy, as so many of their high-profile negotiations tend to be.
For now, at least, coach Herm Edwards isn’t worrying about that. Allen almost certainly will play for the Chiefs in 2008 after they designated him as their franchise player Monday.
“He’s going to play football (for the Chiefs),” Edwards said. “That’s what’s great about my job. I don’t do contracts. I don’t have to deal with that. He’s going to be here. He will be here at the end of the day. He’s going to show up and do what he does.”
Though he is the franchise player, Allen is free to negotiate a contract with other teams. But any offer he accepts would come at a cost. The Chiefs would have the right to match the offer and retain Allen, or decline and receive two first-round draft picks as compensation for his departure.
Allen has been unavailable for comment. His agent, Ken Harris, declined comment other than to refer to Allen’s previous statement that he would not sign a long-term deal with the Chiefs if an agreement isn’t reached by the middle of July.
The Chiefs can make Allen their franchise player again next year, but at a steeper price than the $8.9 million they are obligated to offer him this season on a one-year contract.
Edwards said the Chiefs are trying to build for the long haul as opposed to patching with short-term fixes, as they’ve tended to do in other years. But the franchise designation is a short-term patch, particularly in light of Allen’s statement that the Chiefs have only a few months to sign him to a long-term deal.
Their two most recent franchise players, guard Will Shields in 2000 and tight end Tony Gonzalez in 2002, wound up getting long-term contracts from the Chiefs. But Shields had to play for the one-year offer in 2000 before getting his longer deal the next season.
“This has happened to players here before, and they ended up getting long-term deals,” Edwards said. “Will Shields went through that. Tony Gonzalez went through that. So it’s OK. Instead of arguing (with Allen), we said, ‘This is what we’re going to do, and we’ll talk about it (with Allen) later.’ We want him here, and hopefully things get worked out down the road.
“I think he wants to be here. He likes this place. He likes what we’re doing. He likes our coaching staff. He has a good relationship with all of us. We have a good relationship. We all get along. That’s what’s good about football. There’s football, and then there’s the business part. This is the business part.”