Paylor:Move to free safety is unlikely for Chiefs’ Eric Berry

[Tribal Warfare]

Move to free safety is unlikely for Chiefs’ Eric Berry
By TEREZ A. PAYLOR
The Kansas City Star

The Chiefs are looking for a free safety this offseason, and for some, that might come as a surprise. Especially because the search has nothing to do with the late-season struggles of starter Kendrick Lewis.

Instead, it has to do with the presence of Eric Berry, a fourth-year pro who will participate in his third Pro Bowl at 6:30 tonight.

Given the hype around Berry, who was drafted fifth overall in 2010 out of Tennessee, he would seem to be a natural choice to fill Lewis’ role if he doesn’t return to the Chiefs.

Berry is coming off a strong 2013 season in which he spent most of his time as a linebacker on passing downs and finished with a Pro Football Focus grade of 14.5, which ranks fourth among all safeties. But there is some doubt as to whether he fits the bill as the Chiefs’ version of Seattle’s Earl Thomas, whose sideline-to-sideline speed and ball skills make him an irreplaceable piece for the NFC champion Seahawks, one the Chiefs perhaps missed most this season.

“I think (Berry) is best utilized in the box,” NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock said. “He and Earl Thomas were the same year coming out of college, and they’re very different … Thomas has got better range on the back end, but Berry is a better tackler.”

ESPN analyst Louis Riddick agrees, but he remembers when Berry, who suffered a left ACL injury in 2011, was believed to possess elite feet, someone who played a little cornerback in college and could cover receivers with uncommon ease for a safety.

“He’s kind of gotten away from some of that,” Riddick said. “Sometimes, if you don’t use those skills, you wind up training differently. To me, it looks like he’s gotten thicker, more muscled up, and he’s tighter than he used to be then.”

Berry, who was listed at 6 feet and 203 pounds his final year in college, is now listed at 6 feet and 211 pounds.

“When he was in college, I thought his movement patterns were much more fluid,” Riddick said. “He didn’t appear quite as big and he just didn’t appear quite as tight through his core. And you need all that. You need fluid hips, you need explosive short-area quickness to really be a great cover guy like he used to be.”

But while Mayock’s and Riddick’s critiques of Berry might seem harsh at first blush, it’s actually more like nitpicking. Though he struggled at times in coverage and against the run in the Chiefs’ 45-44 playoff loss to Indianapolis, both analysts consider Berry one of the best safeties in the league, someone any team would like to have.

“That doesn’t mean he’s a bad player, because he’s not,” Riddick said. “He’s a good player. It’s just not of the caliber, I don’t think, that it was when he first came out. Which was, I mean … he was a bad man when it came to being able to cover and hit. Some of that has changed now. That’s all.”

In fact, Riddick even called Berry a “very good” 3-4 scheme safety and compared him to a future Hall of Famer who was used in a similar capacity.

“He is a young Troy Polamalu-type, a guy who can play linebacker, play down in the box, play tight ends,” Riddick said. “I mean, he’s perfect for that.”

Mayock agrees, and thinks the Chiefs would be better served using him in the same manner next season.

“He’s aggressive, he’s comfortable playing that dime linebacker slot that (defensive coordinator) Bob Sutton had him play a lot,” Mayock said. “He could take a tight end out of the game for you … he struggled with some big tight ends recently, but for the most part, I think he’s best in the box because of his physicality and ability to cover tight ends and running backs.”

But in the Chiefs’ aggressive press-man scheme, which relies heavily on a free safety with range to roam the middle, it’s up to the Chiefs to determine how valuable that is. Berry’s cap number is $11.6 million next season, the second highest on the team, but all one needs to do is look to Seattle — which features Thomas at free safety and 6-foot-3, 232-pound Kam Chancellor at strong safety — to see which position is more important.

“To use your Seattle analogy, I think (Berry is) more (like) Kam Chancellor, the guy in the box that’s got some man-to-man skills but is more able to line up against a tight end in man-to-man than he is to drop down on a slot,” Mayock said. “I think what you’re looking for is a free safety on the back end that’s got better range.”

It remains to be seen where the Chiefs will acquire that player. Though the team remains high on the potential of 2013 fifth-rounder Sanders Commings, whose rookie season was marred by injuries, Buffalo’s Jairus Byrd fits Sutton’s scheme.

Byrd, 27, is a true center-field-type safety and three-time Pro Bowler who lacks Thomas’ speed but is a smart ball hawk. But even if he doesn’t re-sign with the Bills, he has publicly voiced his belief that he should be the game’s highest-paid safety, which would likely pay him upwards of $9 million annually.

That’s an enormous number, particularly for the Chiefs, who will have to aggressively restructure or extend the contracts of some key players this offseason to build on the projected $2.5 million of cap room they are expected to have in 2014.

In that respect, a few negotiation targets could include Tamba Hali ($11.4 million), Brandon Flowers ($10.5 million), Alex Smith ($8 million cap number), Jamaal Charles ($4.8 million), Derrick Johnson ($4.2 million) and, yes, Berry. Even if the Chiefs freed up money, it remains to be seen if they’d be willing to invest that much at safety, especially with Berry’s contract still on the books through 2015.

“Philosophically, I don’t know if John (Dorsey, the Chiefs general manager) believes in allocating the kind of resources it will take to get a player like that at that position,” Riddick said. “It will depend on what his philosophy is, as far as how he’s going to spread out his cap money, to even consider signing somebody like him. So we’ll see.”

Dorsey, of course, isn’t going to say. He prefers to keep the business of football out of the media.

But when asked how much better his well-paid, Pro Bowl safety — one who fills a big role but not necessarily his team’s biggest defensive need — can get, well, Dorsey isn’t afraid to make his opinion on the matter known.

“He has the utmost respect, he’s a good player,” Dorsey said. “I’m sure he’s got a lot (of growth left).”

[notorious]

Originally Posted by Tribal Warfare

Given the hype around Berry, who was drafted fifth overall in 2010 out of Tennessee, he would seem to be a natural choice to fill Lewis’ role if he doesn’t return to the Chiefs.

If?


IF?

[jkw87]

Originally Posted by notorious

If?


IF?

Yeah, they're really savvy about our back end IF they even consider Lewis has any role there anymore...

[crazycoffey]

Draft a cb and he or Cummings will fill Lewis' departure well

[BlackHelicopters]

Parlor IF IF IF

[TEX]

Originally Posted by notorious

If?


IF?

I read it to mean IF LEWIS doesnt return to the Chiefs. In which case I would say WHEN LEWIS DOESNT RETURN...

[Simply Red]

I really don't understand any of this - the op - the comments, none of it.

[Saccopoo]

They are absolutely correct about Berry.

He is one of, if not the, best front end box safeties in the league. He's fast, instinctive and really can fill gaps against the run. He was very effective in the short zone this past season. He takes very good angles to the ball carrier and is excellent at getting into the backfield, especially on wide/end runs and screen passes.

However, he is not a back zone, free safety. He has always struggled when dropped into coverage. He doesn't get in-between his man and the ball very well and tends to trail the receiver far too much. During games, you can actually see that teams/the better, smarter quarterbacks will target him if they find the Chiefs putting him into a deeper coverage area.

The Chiefs need a true free safety. Problem is, there isn't a top flight one in the draft, so they had better hope that Commings "gets it" this next season, or they sign a guy like the Eagles Nate Allen, the Packers Morgan Burnett or the Bears Major Wright in free agency.

Allen was the third safety picked in the remarkable 2010 safety class behind Berry and Thomas and has been hampered by injuries. However, he was injury free this past season and put together a very good season. His best football is ahead of him. He's got good range and was a ball hawk at the collegiate level.

Major Wright was the #1 prep recruit in the country and played college ball at Florida. He's also beginning to play to his lofty expectations and is also a free agent this next season.

Morgan Burnett was the best safety in his class statistically when he came out of college. His junior year numbers were as good or better than Berry's remarkable sophomore year. He's shown excellent ball instincts in coverage for the Packers during his pro career, which, like Berry, was cut a season short by an ACL injury. However, he's shown excellent durability since.

Either Wright, Burnett or Allen would be a monstrous addition to the Chiefs defense at the free safety position, wouldn't cost as much as Jairus Byrd and offer just as much in terms of talent and production - IMO.

One of those three guys is who the Chiefs should sign.

[Kman34]

It just boggles my mind that we draft a safety and end up turning him into a linebacker that only covers the tight end and maybe a RB. His number should change to something in the 50's

[Saccopoo]

Originally Posted by Kman34

It just boggles my mind that we draft a safety and end up turning him into a linebacker that only covers the tight end and maybe a RB. His number should change to something in the 50's

It's actually a perfect scenario for running what used to be the Bear's 46 defense.

Both Berry and Dontari Poe are absolutely perfect for their roles in that alignment. The only thing that's holding it back is Bob Sutton's maddeningly inexplicable non-use of Jerrell Powe as the NT in that set.

[notorious]

I just pictured Lewis being the lone safety in the 4-6 defense. Oh My God.

[Sandy Vagina]

Originally Posted by Saccopoo

They are absolutely correct about Berry.

He is one of, if not the, best front end box safeties in the league. He's fast, instinctive and really can fill gaps against the run. He was very effective in the short zone this past season. He takes very good angles to the ball carrier and is excellent at getting into the backfield, especially on wide/end runs and screen passes.

However, he is not a back zone, free safety. He has always struggled when dropped into coverage. He doesn't get in-between his man and the ball very well and tends to trail the receiver far too much. During games, you can actually see that teams/the better, smarter quarterbacks will target him if they find the Chiefs putting him into a deeper coverage area.

The Chiefs need a true free safety. Problem is, there isn't a top flight one in the draft

I agree that Berry's best fit is as a box safety... though one of the best and with excellent range as that SS.

What though makes you so sure there isn't a top-notch FS in this draft? No rookie is ideal to start immediately, but there are some options with the skills to start and develop into a top-notch one throughout the 2014 season. Let's face it... it won't take much at all to be an upgrade over Kendrick.

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by Saccopoo

They are absolutely correct about Berry.

He is one of, if not the, best front end box safeties in the league. He's fast, instinctive and really can fill gaps against the run. He was very effective in the short zone this past season. He takes very good angles to the ball carrier and is excellent at getting into the backfield, especially on wide/end runs and screen passes.

However, he is not a back zone, free safety. He has always struggled when dropped into coverage. He doesn't get in-between his man and the ball very well and tends to trail the receiver far too much. During games, you can actually see that teams/the better, smarter quarterbacks will target him if they find the Chiefs putting him into a deeper coverage area.

The Chiefs need a true free safety. Problem is, there isn't a top flight one in the draft, so they had better hope that Commings "gets it" this next season, or they sign a guy like the Eagles Nate Allen, the Packers Morgan Burnett or the Bears Major Wright in free agency.

Allen was the third safety picked in the remarkable 2010 safety class behind Berry and Thomas and has been hampered by injuries. However, he was injury free this past season and put together a very good season. His best football is ahead of him. He's got good range and was a ball hawk at the collegiate level.

Major Wright was the #1 prep recruit in the country and played college ball at Florida. He's also beginning to play to his lofty expectations and is also a free agent this next season.

Morgan Burnett was the best safety in his class statistically when he came out of college. His junior year numbers were as good or better than Berry's remarkable sophomore year. He's shown excellent ball instincts in coverage for the Packers during his pro career, which, like Berry, was cut a season short by an ACL injury. However, he's shown excellent durability since.

Either Wright, Burnett or Allen would be a monstrous addition to the Chiefs defense at the free safety position, wouldn't cost as much as Jairus Byrd and offer just as much in terms of talent and production - IMO.

One of those three guys is who the Chiefs should sign.

I agree. Allen is especially intriguing, but I fear he's never going to have the same kind of speed he had. He played well but he's not as fast as he used to be.

But let's not forget that Berry had an absolutely forgettable performance against Indy, and that wasn't just because of his teammates. He's got to play better than that.

[J Diddy]

Originally Posted by notorious

I just pictured Lewis being the lone safety in the 4-6 defense. Oh My God.

That could lead to suicide right there.

[Deberg_1990]

Translation: Berrys good, but not great.

Earl Thomas is better
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