The Franchise Label

Mar 07, 2008, 2:21:08 AM by Bob Gretz - FAQ

The first week of free agency has passed in the NFL and all has been quiet on the Jared Allen front.

That doesn’t mean there isn’t talking going on. Negotiations between the Chiefs and their franchise player have continued through the last few days. Now, it wouldn’t be accurate to say those conversations will produce a new long-term contract for Allen in the next week or even next month.

But they are part of the negotiating dance that takes place between every team in the league and the players who sit at the top of their payroll, which Allen certainly will be with the Chiefs when all is said and done.

It’s a tough process and it should be. We are talking about the commitment of millions of dollars, major investments for each NFL team. In the last week it may seem that some teams throw millions around willy-nilly, but that’s certainly not the case for the majority of clubs and certainly not with the best-run franchises in the league.

The same sort of situation is happening in Baltimore between the Ravens and their franchise player Terrell Suggs. It’s going on in Seattle with the Seahawks and their franchise player Marcus Trufant, and in Nashville with the Titans and franchise player Albert Haynesworth and in Charlotte with the Panthers and franchise player Jordan Gross.

In all, it’s going on with nine other franchises in the league. The job of the team is to acquire talent within the parameters of the salary cap and their budget. The job of the player and his agent is to get as much money as possible. Obviously, those are very different goals and making it work to the satisfaction of both sides takes time.

And that time may not come even during the coming 2008 season. When the Chiefs named Allen their non-exclusive franchise player, they tendered him a one-year contract that’s the average of the top five salaries from last year at defensive end. According to NFL Players Association information, that figure is $8,879,000.

Along with continuing negotiations on a long-term deal, Allen has two choices: he can sign the offer from the Chiefs and play the upcoming season for that franchise number. Or he can sit at home and not play in ‘08. The later option would be nonsensical for Allen, since it wouldn’t improve his situation in any fashion, but players have chosen that route over the years.

And don’t feel bad for Allen if he has to settle for the franchise tender. It would mean a salary increase of close to 400 percent from what he was paid in 2007.

Playing a whole season under the franchise tender offer happens all the time. Last year, there were seven players designated by their teams as franchise players. DE Charles Grant of New Orleans signed a deal with the Saints in April. DT Cory Redding of Detroit signed with the Lions and DE Dwight Freeney of Indianapolis signed with the Colts in July.

The other four franchise players – LB Lance Briggs of Chicago, K Josh Brown of Seattle, CB Asante Samuel of New England and DE Justin Smith of Cincinnati – all played the ‘07 season on the franchise tender. All four then hit the free agent market last week and all have new contracts. Brown signed with St. Louis, Smith with San Francisco and Samuel with Philadelphia. Briggs re-signed with the Bears, after saying many times he would never play another down for Chicago after the ‘07 season.

The Chiefs want to keep Allen, and no matter what’s been said or not said, anybody that knows Allen knows he wants to stay with the Chiefs. The fight is over money. It always is in free agency.

And right now that all is quiet is not necessarily a bad thing.

The opinions offered in this column do not necessarily reflect those of the Kansas City Chiefs.

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A former beat reporter who covered the Pittsburgh Steelers during their glory years, Gretz covered the Chiefs for the Kansas City Star for nine years. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Board of Selectors. He has been the senior columnist for the Chiefs web site since its inception.