Eric Berry ‘a bit surprised’ on lack of extension progress

[Quesadilla Joe]

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/nfl...e88612427.html

Spoiler!

Against the backdrop of approximately 352 kids laughing, jumping and playing on a humid summer night, Chiefs safety Eric Berry wore a smile on his face as he stood on the turf at North Kansas City High School and explained what he knew about his current contract status.

And Berry — who has until July 15 to get an extension done with the Chiefs, lest he play the 2016 under the one-year franchise tag — took a break from his sixth annual free youth football camp on Friday and made a few things clear.

One, he absolutely still wants to be a Chief for the long term.

And, two, yes, he is a bit surprised it’s taken so long for a new deal to get done.

“I thought it would progress a little bit more,” Berry said. “But it’s still been pretty much the same since the last time we talked. A lot can change in a week. A lot can change for whenever the deadline is.”

Berry’s surprise makes sense. Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt said at the NFL’s annual meeting in March that he’s hopeful to get a long-term deal done with Berry, and that he’s “certainly” somebody that they “would like to be a Chief for a very, very long time.”

Hunt added that he got a sense that Berry shared the sentiment to stay, a notion the 27-year old Berry — who has spent the last seven years with the Chiefs — also said in March and repeated Friday.

“Obviously I’d love to be a Chief — I want to be a Chief long term, just because of the community, the staff, from top to bottom, the players and everything,” Berry said. “But sometimes things don’t go as planned, and I’m prepared for that, but hopefully it goes as planned, and I’m prepared for that, as well.”

If the Chiefs can’t reach a new deal with Berry before the July 15 deadline, Berry would have to play the 2016 season under the $10.8 million franchise tender. However, he could also hold off on signing the tender, which would allow him to skip training camp and the preseason and return shortly before the regular season and still collect his full $10.8 million salary.

Still, an extension is sensible for both sides. Although the franchise tender is good money (and guaranteed, too) Berry stands to collect far more guaranteed money with a new deal, as he has the same number of all-pro selections (two) and three more Pro Bowl selections (four) than the league’s highest-paid safety, Harrison Smith, who recently signed a five-year, $51.25 million pact with the Vikings that includes nearly $29 million guaranteed.

What’s more, assuming Berry agreed to a richer deal than Smith’s, the cash-strapped Chiefs — who have a league-low $226,818 in cap space. according to the NFL Players Association — would still stand to create a minimum of $3 million or so in cap room this year with an extension. Iit’s worth noting the team already has a significant amount of money committed to 2017 — upwards of $166 million, which already surpasses the 2016 cap number of $155 million.

The Chiefs also have the option of rescinding the tender on Berry, which would create $10.8 million in cap room. However, that would make one of their most popular — and more important — players an unrestricted free agent, which hardly seems like a reasonable option for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.

“It’s a completely different atmosphere (without him),” said center Mitch Morse, who helped out at Berry’s camp on Friday. “I’ve only met a few people who, when they walk into a room full of people, that you feel their presence and people immediately shut up. He’s such a profound speaker, and he has profound things to say, and you inherently want to listen and gain knowledge. You respect the hell out of him.”

Berry, who fast-tracked his way back from a December 2014 diagnosis of Hodgkin lymphoma to return in time for the start of training camp last July, served as the emotional leader of the 2015 Chiefs, which rallied from a 1-5 start to win 11 straight games, including their first playoff win in 22 years.

He did it on the field too, as he looked quicker and faster than in previous seasons — he was back to playing at his college weight of 210 pounds — on the way to racking up 61 tackles, 10 pass deflections and two interceptions and make the Pro Bowl, be named an all-pro and win the NFL’s comeback player of the year award.

“He’s one of the main focal points of this team,” said Morse, whose comments have been parroted by several teammates, including quarterback Alex Smith. “He means a lot to Chiefs Kingdom, and he sure as hell means a lot to us, as players. We’re incomplete without him and we love the energy and passion he brings.”

Still, business is business, and Berry understands that. One of his closest friends on the team is outside linebacker Justin Houston, who was franchise-tagged in March 2015 after a 22-sack season and had to wait out the next several months as his agent, Joel Segal, and the Chiefs hammered out a six-year, $101 million extension right before the July 15 deadline.

“It’s crazy because I was talking to him when he was going through the exact same thing — it’s like roles have switched just a year later,” Berry said. “He just keeps telling me to be patient and control what I can control. So I gave him that advice, and he’s given me the same advice. That’s all I can do.”

So Berry, who has always believed in letting his work speak for himself, has spent the last several months training in Florida, getting ready for the season.

He looked trim and happy as he worked with the kids on Friday — the turnout was the best his camp in Kansas City has ever had, by the way — his trademark brown, red-tinged hair and goatee fluffy and full, a stark contrast to the way he looked last summer, even after his chemo treatments had long come to an end.

To be sure, Berry is grateful for that, a fact that came across as he spoke optimistically about his goals for the next several months, despite the uncertainty of his contract situation.

“I definitely want to get a ring, and I definitely want to be a Chief,” Berry said. “Hopefully, we can make that happen.”

And to be clear, Berry hasn’t lost faith, regardless of his surprise at the lack of recent progress.

“You know miracles happen — I’m a witness,” Berry said with a smile. “So it might go down to the wire, you know ... and hopefully they handle their end, and hopefully it comes together like it’s supposed to.”

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Good to see Berry finally getting the mass-support from this place that he's deserved all along.

That era of "**** Berry, he's just being stingy" made me want to puke all over some of you.

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by KChiefs1

https://youtu.be/RSgRpImXZ3Y












Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Awesome. What an amazing season for him.

Would be difficult to replicate.

[Skyy God]

Originally Posted by BossChief

Berry will probably get close to 14m per

Berry can go **** himself at $14M per.

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

Berry had a great, great season but if I have to make a pick between the two I'm still resigning Poe. Games are won in the trenches and Poe's are much harder to find than Berry's

[Iczer]

Originally Posted by Hog Farmer

Berry had a great, great season but if I have to make a pick between the two I'm still resigning Poe. Games are won in the trenches and Poe's are much harder to find than Berry's

ehh I think by that logic then Berry is far more important than Poe. As a NT, isn't your main job to clog up the line and stop the run? You realize how bad KC was against the run right? This is specifically about Poe and being a NT...I know about KC's LB injuries.

I don't think you can argue that Poe made more impact plays than Berry did. Berry won the Atlanta game alone with his int's.

I love Poe and I hope KC can re-sign him...if the price is right. if not, sorry.

[ToxSocks]

Originally Posted by Dagnabit

Good to see Berry finally getting the mass-support from this place that he's deserved all along.

That era of "**** Berry, he's just being stingy" made me want to puke all over some of you.

This.

[ToxSocks]

Originally Posted by Hog Farmer

Berry had a great, great season but if I have to make a pick between the two I'm still resigning Poe. Games are won in the trenches and Poe's are much harder to find than Berry's

Yeah 0 tackles and 0 sacks is hard to replace.

[Red Dawg]

My stance on him has not changed. He's asking for to much and should not get it from us. He got paid millions for going through rehab and cancer treatments and now has the nerve to **** us over. **** him.

[ToxSocks]

Originally Posted by Tuckdaddy

My stance on him has not changed. He's asking for to much and should not get it from us. He got paid millions for going through rehab and cancer treatments and now has the nerve to **** us over. **** him.

Dumb as ****. He missed less than half a season, missed no training camp the following season, turned in a Pro-Bowl year and won came back player of the year.

"Nerve to **** us over" aka he has the "nerve" to ask for his market value. Oh shame on him for asking the Chiefs to pay him what any other team would.

[ToxSocks]

Drop this bullshit. The Chiefs didn't do Berry any favors by not cutting him. They were smart to not cut him. They took a wait and see approach for half a season. Not only did they get a ton of positive PR, as well as avoiding negative PR, but he came and had back to back All-Pro level seasons.

[The Franchise]

Originally Posted by Detoxing

Drop this bullshit. The Chiefs didn't do Berry any favors by not cutting him. They were smart to not cut him. They took a wait and see approach for half a season. Not only did they get a ton of positive PR, as well as avoiding negative PR, but he came and had back to back All-Pro level seasons.

And now he deserves to get paid. Dude literally went out there and won us games.

[Urc Burry]

Originally Posted by Tuckdaddy

My stance on him has not changed. He's asking for to much and should not get it from us. He got paid millions for going through rehab and cancer treatments and now has the nerve to **** us over. **** him.

Uhhhhh what? Say he had a season ending injury... how is that any different? Berry has been nothing but a class act. He does so much in the community too. Was at a youth camp while the pro bowl was going on

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Pay Berry. He deserves every penny. Poe play could drop off a cliff any second. Oh wait...

[Skyy God]

Originally Posted by Pestilence

And now he deserves to get paid. Dude literally went out there and won us games.

Berry's made almost $71M from the Chiefs. Moreover, he just turned 28, has likely already peaked, and doesn't have a logical position to transition (e.g., CB to FS) if he loses a step or two.

All those factors suggest they shouldn't overpay.

[Urc Burry]

Originally Posted by Cave Johnson

Berry's made almost $71M from the Chiefs. Moreover, he just turned 28, has likely already peaked, and doesn't have a logical position to transition (e.g., CB to FS) if he loses a step or two.

All those factors suggest they shouldn't overpay.

How much he's been paid in the past is irrelevant. It's not his fault there wasn't a rookie scale. Polamalu and Reed played at a high level for about 10 years. (Weddle just had one of his better years at 32) So I would assume Berry has about another good 4 years in him. You can get him on a 4-5 year deal where it is easier to get out after year 3. And if Berry does lose his range/speed he has already shown in the Romeo years that he can be an elite box safety