Getty Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. on August 20, 2021.
The Kansas City Chiefs and starting left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. were unable to come to an agreement on a long-term deal prior to the July 15, 4 p.m. eastern time deadline, according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero. On top of that, Brown still hasn’t signed his franchise tender with the Chiefs, which would pay him a fully guaranteed $16.7 million for the 2022 season, per Pelissero. That means if Brown wants to sit out training camp this summer he won’t be fined by the team for doing so.
#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.
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The deal Kansas City offered Brown was essentially a five-year contract that would have paid him $91 million, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Media. The Chiefs were also willing to guarantee his money through the 2023 season, per Garafolo. However, Brown and his agent, Michael Portner of Delta Sports Group, felt that the contract didn’t provide much stability for the left tackle in the backend of the deal, per Pelissero.
“We got really close,” Portner told Pelissero. “We 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.”
Portner: “We got really close. We 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.”
With the chance existing that Brown could sit out all of training camp and potentially even some regular season games (although he will get fined if he misses games), one analyst has named a “solid Plan B” option to replace Brown in the lineup if he sits out.
Christian Named ‘Plan B’ to Replace Brown
Lucas Strozinsky of Arrowhead Pride named veteran offensive tackle Geron Christian as the next-best option on Kansas City’s roster to replace Brown if he were to sit out.
Christian signed a one-year deal with the Chiefs this offseason that will pay him $1.047 million guaranteed, per Over The Cap.
“One positive of Christian replacing Brown is that he has significant left tackle experience, with over 1,000 career snaps on the blindside,” Strozinsky wrote on July 16. “Another silver lining of Christian taking over is that the Chiefs likely won’t see much of a dip in quality of play on passing downs, if at all, if Brown doesn’t play.
Christian was a third-round pick of the then-Washington Redskins in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Louisville. In three seasons with Washington, he played a total of 24 games, but only started in eight of them, according to Pro Football Reference. Last season — in his lone season with the Texans — Christian played in 14 regular-season games and started eight of them.
Per PFF, 560 of the 588 total offensive snaps played by Christian last season were at left tackle. The other 28 were at right tackle. He earned a 78.8 passing block grade by PFF. During his four-year career, he has played a total of 1,042 snaps at left tackle and 119 at right tackle.
Plugging Christian in at left tackle would create some problems, however, which Strozinsky also noted.
“The downside of Christian playing left tackle, however, is that run blocking is not a strength. Based on last season, he’s more of a pass protector than a road grader, which can be a problem if the Chiefs want to use the interior of their offensive line to their advantage and run it down the defense’s throats.”
Twitter Users React to Brown Rejecting KC’s Offer
Twitter users have been reacting to the news of Brown rejecting KC’s sizable contract offer.
“Chiefs offered to make Orlando Brown Jr. the highest paid LT in the game and his team turned it down for even more guaranteed money. Don’t tell me the Chiefs are cheap,” one Twitter user wrote.
Chiefs offered to make Orlando Brown Jr. the highest paid LT in the game and his team turned it down for even more guaranteed money.
Don’t tell me the Chiefs are cheap.
“I very much understand why Orlando Brown Jr. is demanding a ton of money after what happened to his dad But realistically, he’s not gonna receive what he’s looking for from practically any team,” another user wrote.
I very much understand why Orlando Brown Jr. is demanding a ton of money after what happened to his dad
But realistically, he’s not gonna receive what he’s looking for from practically any team
“The amount of people who think that Orlando Brown Jr will take anything less than a top 5 LT contract to protect the top QB in the league is hilarious. He is good enough and young enough to command a massive pay day,” another user wrote.