The Kansas City Chiefs and LT Orlando Brown Jr. are not expected to reach a deal ahead of Friday afternoon’s deadline.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that Brown Jr.’s agent, Michael Portner, says the two sides weren’t able to reach an agreement on a long-term deal. There is still time ahead of the deadline, but this seems to suggest that the sides are too far apart on one particular part of the contract offer to bridge the gap ahead of the deadline.
Pelissero also reports that the Chiefs offered Brown Jr. a six-year contract, which provided the highest signing bonus and average per year for a left tackle in the NFL. Chiefs Wire is told the signing bonus exceeded $30 million and the average per year was around $23.5 million, which is more than Trent Williams received last offseason. Brown Jr.’s team decided there was not enough guaranteed money over the life of the contract, ultimately nixing any potential for a deal to take place.
#Chiefs franchise-tagged OT Orlando Brown Jr.’s agent, Michael Portner, tells me the sides weren’t able to reach a long-term deal.
KC offered Brown the highest signing bonus and APY on 6-year deal, but Brown’s team decided there wasn’t enough security over the life of the deal.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) July 15, 2022
“We got really close,” Portner told Pelissero. “We enjoyed dealing with the Chiefs and we understand their position as well. I’m not gonna let these athletes sign a flashy contract without the substance or security there.”
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported on Thursday evening that the two sides were still talking shop despite reports that they remained far apart on a deal. There is still time for the two sides to come to an agreement and this report could be Brown Jr.’s side trying to get a better offer out of Kansas City before the deadline comes up at 3:00 p.m. CT. Right now, it sounds as if he’ll be playing on the franchise tag, earning a fully-guaranteed $16.6 million for the 2022 NFL season.