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The Kansas City Chiefs locked up LB Tamba Hali to the tune of five years, $60 million, according to reports late on Wednesday night. We knew a deal for him was coming -- we just didn't know when. The Chiefs were very good about keeping things under wraps throughout the negotiation process so we really didn't know where they stood until last night.
Now that the Chiefs have locked Hali in, who is the next Chief to receive a long-term deal? Here are a few options (and we talked about this a couple weeks ago, too):
CB Brandon Flowers: He's entering the final year of his contract and I heard the Chiefs had some talks with before the lockout so I'm thinking both sides want to get this done. He'd be first on my life of Chiefs that need long-term deals.
CB Brandon Carr: We're not sure what the Chiefs will do with Carr. If they wanted, the Chiefs could keep him for two more years without giving him a long-term deal via the restricted free agent tender in 2011 and the franchise tag in 2012. We shall see how they proceed with him but it'll be interesting.
WR Dwayne Bowe: He's also entering the final year of his contract though we're not sure if the Chiefs have expressed interest in signing him long-term. This will be one of the big story lines in the 2011-12 season.
DE Wallace Gilberry: I'm a big Gilberry fan and hope he gets his long-term deal. I can, however, see Gilberry wanting to turn into a three-down player. I'm not sure how the Chiefs will handle that.
There aren't a whole lot of long-term contract options because such a large bulk of the team came in the 2008-2010 NFL drafts which means they're still young and under contract. The Chiefs have also addressed a number of core guys including Hali, RB Jamaal Charles and LB Derrick Johnson.
So who's the next one to get a long-term deal?