Last year around this time we were wondering if Brian Waters was going to show up to the Kansas City Chiefs offseason program. There had been the report a few weeks prior that he was upset with the new management and most of us assumed his absence would indicate his displeasure.
Well, he didn't show but later explained that he rarely shows up for the entirety of the voluntary offseason program. And, frankly, I think a lot of us were okay with that because he's always performed at a high level on the field.
This year there's no reported tiff between he and management and while he's in Kansas City, it's not for the offseason program.
"I haven't participated in the offseason program fully in five or six years," Waters said according to the Kansas City Star. "That's nothing new. I would never miss out on (offseason practice) because of displeasure with the team. I'll be participating for sure in everything mandatory. Everything else will be my prerogative to choose if I'm going to be there."
If he needed a reason to miss the offseason program, then he's got a good one. Yesterday his foundation -- Brian Waters 54 Foundation -- partnered up with Smashburger in Overland Park, KS. The burger joint will donate portions of their proceeds to his foundation for the next week.
"Right now, my priorities are my family first, which it always is," Waters said. "This particular part of the season is also about business and about trying to prepare for things after football. This is a part of that. My foundation is going to follow me basically even when my football career is over. This is a part of getting prepared for that part of my life."
We noted back at the start of the season that Waters had hired an agent after previously representing himself for a number of years. Despite that, Waters indicated that he's still controlling his business.
So even though he's not around, I think we can expect Waters to show up and be ready to play.