Merrill column: Shields to stay a Chief

BigRock · 03-14-2006, 02:16 AM

Shields to stay a Chief
Four-year deal will let lineman retire in KC

By ELIZABETH MERRILL
The Kansas City Star

Will Shields, who’s been through four coaches, seven starting quarterbacks and 207 straight games in the starting lineup, is staying in Kansas City.

Shields has agreed to a four-year contract extension that will allow him to retire with the Chiefs, his agent, Joe Linta, said Monday.

“They were very accommodating people,” Linta said. “Everybody’s pretty happy.”

The deal ended a month’s worth of speculation surrounding a lifelong Chief who has been the anchor of one of the NFL’s top offensive lines. Shields was due $5.1 million in salary in 2006, the last year of his contract. He also had seriously considered retirement because of arthritis in his knee and back.

As the deadline approached for teams to get under the NFL salary cap earlier this month, several media outlets reported that Shields had been cut.

But the Chiefs kept him on the roster, then reworked a more cap-friendly, front-loaded deal that Linta said would let Shields retire after 2006 without having to pay back a portion of the bonus.

“He’s only obligated to the Chiefs for this year and will have the option to decide on retirement after this season,” Linta said.

“He took a slight pay cut to stay with the Chiefs. I think his family loves it there and he likes his buddies on the team. We kind of analyzed what he’d get on the open market, and when you’re 34 years old, you’re probably not going to get the kind of deal (Seahawks mega-millions guard) Steve Hutchinson is going to get at this point. We were going to work to try and get it done here, and Carl (Peterson) and Denny (Thum) did the same.”

The Chiefs selected Shields in the third round of the 1993 draft, and he played in the season opener that year when starting left guard Dave Szott went down with a knee injury on the third play. Shields started the next week at Houston and hasn’t come out of the starting lineup since.

He’s been to 11 Pro Bowls, and Kansas City’s offense has finished first in the NFL the past two years. Three of the Chiefs’ offensive linemen went to Honolulu this winter — Shields, guard Brian Waters and tackle Willie Roaf. Waters recently signed a contract extension, and Roaf, also an 11-time Pro Bowler, is expected back again in 2006.

But Shields’ return seemed the least likely when the team wrapped up a 10-6 season in January. He said he’d go to Hawaii and decide in the following weeks if his body could sustain another season.

Shields eventually decided he wanted to play one or two more years, benefiting from a scaled-down training camp and practice schedule.
But as late as two weeks ago, Shields seemed pessimistic that his career would continue in Kansas City.

“I could play here, I could play for another team, or I could not play at all. You never can tell,” he said at the time. “I’m not going to worry about it. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen.”

Now Shields is poised to finish his NFL career in the same city he started.

Also Monday, Chiefs backup quarterback Todd Collins was scheduled back in the Bahamas for his fishing trip after a weekend visit to Washington. Collins’ agent, Brad Blank, said Washington has yet to make an offer, probably because the club is still shopping No. 2 quarterback Patrick Ramsey.

“We’re still talking with them,” Blank said. “They were very nice, but we’re kind of on hold. They’re telling us to hang on, but it looks like they’re waiting for that other shoe to drop.”

Collins has been the Chiefs’ No. 2 quarterback behind Trent Green for five seasons.

03-14-2006, 02:16 AM	Topic Starter
BigRock Pritay Pritay Pritay Good Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: The State of Euphoria Casino cash: $3455412	Merrill column: Shields to stay a Chief Shields to stay a Chief Four-year deal will let lineman retire in KC By ELIZABETH MERRILL The Kansas City Star Will Shields, who’s been through four coaches, seven starting quarterbacks and 207 straight games in the starting lineup, is staying in Kansas City. Shields has agreed to a four-year contract extension that will allow him to retire with the Chiefs, his agent, Joe Linta, said Monday. “They were very accommodating people,” Linta said. “Everybody’s pretty happy.” The deal ended a month’s worth of speculation surrounding a lifelong Chief who has been the anchor of one of the NFL’s top offensive lines. Shields was due $5.1 million in salary in 2006, the last year of his contract. He also had seriously considered retirement because of arthritis in his knee and back. As the deadline approached for teams to get under the NFL salary cap earlier this month, several media outlets reported that Shields had been cut. But the Chiefs kept him on the roster, then reworked a more cap-friendly, front-loaded deal that Linta said would let Shields retire after 2006 without having to pay back a portion of the bonus. “He’s only obligated to the Chiefs for this year and will have the option to decide on retirement after this season,” Linta said. “He took a slight pay cut to stay with the Chiefs. I think his family loves it there and he likes his buddies on the team. We kind of analyzed what he’d get on the open market, and when you’re 34 years old, you’re probably not going to get the kind of deal (Seahawks mega-millions guard) Steve Hutchinson is going to get at this point. We were going to work to try and get it done here, and Carl (Peterson) and Denny (Thum) did the same.” The Chiefs selected Shields in the third round of the 1993 draft, and he played in the season opener that year when starting left guard Dave Szott went down with a knee injury on the third play. Shields started the next week at Houston and hasn’t come out of the starting lineup since. He’s been to 11 Pro Bowls, and Kansas City’s offense has finished first in the NFL the past two years. Three of the Chiefs’ offensive linemen went to Honolulu this winter — Shields, guard Brian Waters and tackle Willie Roaf. Waters recently signed a contract extension, and Roaf, also an 11-time Pro Bowler, is expected back again in 2006. But Shields’ return seemed the least likely when the team wrapped up a 10-6 season in January. He said he’d go to Hawaii and decide in the following weeks if his body could sustain another season. Shields eventually decided he wanted to play one or two more years, benefiting from a scaled-down training camp and practice schedule. But as late as two weeks ago, Shields seemed pessimistic that his career would continue in Kansas City. “I could play here, I could play for another team, or I could not play at all. You never can tell,” he said at the time. “I’m not going to worry about it. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen.” Now Shields is poised to finish his NFL career in the same city he started. Also Monday, Chiefs backup quarterback Todd Collins was scheduled back in the Bahamas for his fishing trip after a weekend visit to Washington. Collins’ agent, Brad Blank, said Washington has yet to make an offer, probably because the club is still shopping No. 2 quarterback Patrick Ramsey. “We’re still talking with them,” Blank said. “They were very nice, but we’re kind of on hold. They’re telling us to hang on, but it looks like they’re waiting for that other shoe to drop.” Collins has been the Chiefs’ No. 2 quarterback behind Trent Green for five seasons.
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