Getty Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. exits the field after a victory on November 14, 2021.
The Kansas City Chiefs are riding high off a six-game win streak and just like that, Andy Reid’s squad is a Super Bowl favorite once again.
The Chiefs fearless leader deserves a ton of credit for the consistency but so does general manager Brett Veach. Building a perennial winner isn’t easy in a cap-regulated sport and yet KC has been a playoff contender for the better part of the last decade.
Part of that is planning and anticipation. Yes, the Chiefs are in the midst of a potential championship run but the front office always spends a large portion of their time evaluating for next season as well.
Draft and scouting prep, free agent chatter, budgeting, roster assessment and so much more. Veach has staff members focused on the present and future and one key name will be a major cornerstone of this offseason.
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Brown Listed as Top-10 Free Agent
Pro Football Focus released their official NFL free agent rank for 2022, detailing the top 75 players that they expect to be available next spring.
Chiefs left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. made the top 10, at number nine according to the grading site. PFF wrote:
Brown was traded for a first-round pick this year and now gets to exert that leverage over the acquiring club, the Kansas City Chiefs, for a very strong contract extension. Brown was granted his request to depart from the Baltimore Ravens so that he could start full-time at left tackle. He’s done just that so far in a polar opposite offensive system, protecting quarterback Patrick Mahomes as opposed to Lamar Jackson. Brown is grading above 70.0 as a pass-blocker and a run-blocker while adjusting to a dropback passing attack and starting alongside an entirely new offensive line unit. The Chiefs probably feel comfortable about their trade decision and will now pay up accordingly.
As the summary noted, Brown has Veach and KC right where he wants them. They already sacrificed a first-rounder to bring him here and a failure to reach an extension would be a disaster — unless the Chiefs win another Super Bowl because of him.
Even if that happens, you want the 25-year old tackle blocking for Mahomes long-term. The right tackle position has been a weak spot this season and the Chiefs cannot afford to lose their most reliable bookend in free agency.
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Price Tag & Why an Extension Is a Must
Brown’s pass protection grades have been solid (74.1), although he has allowed 33 quarterback pressures on the year. He’s right there as a run-blocker too with a 69.3 from PFF.
Has he been an outright superstar top-5 left tackle with KC? No, but he’s been dependable. PFF added: “Since taking over as a starter in Week 7 of his rookie season in 2018, Brown has not missed a game, and he played over 1,100 snaps in each of the past two seasons.”
A track record of good health is almost as important as talent at a position like this and Brown has both.
The grading site projects him to earn a contract of “five years, $105 million ($21M per year, $73.5 million total guaranteed).”
This is one of those deals Veach will hope to get figured out before March but why not get an extension done now? He’s only going to make more if he helps the Chiefs throughout a postseason run.
Plus, who do you even replace him with if Brown walks in free agency? If they make it to the open market, the best-left tackles available in 2022 are probably:
- Terron Armstead (age 30).
- Duane Brown (36).
- Trent Brown (28).
- Riley Reiff (33).
- Charles Leno (30).
- Cam Robinson (26).
None of these guys are better than the Chiefs left tackle aside from maybe Armstead or Duane Brown, but both are on the wrong side of 30.
Of course, you could draft a replacement but the more Kansas City wins, the less likely they are to find a can’t miss LT prospect — and don’t forget that they could still use help on the right side.
The only solution that makes sense is for Veach to grab the old checkbook and pay up. From the sound of it, that may be one fat deal — nine-figure fat to be exact.