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We all know the Branden Albert trade rumors. Kansas City Chiefs GM John Dorsey confirmed that the Chiefs had given the Miami Dolphins permission to talk contract with Albert's reps. So where do those contract talks stand?
Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports, who previously covered the Dolphins in Miami, reports that a Branden Albert trade between the Chiefs and Dolphins will only go down if Albert, who is "believed" to be seeking $8-9 million per year, drops his price tag "significantly".
Joeckel, Fisher or Jordan
The rumor mill says the Chiefs are likely deciding between Joeckel and Fisher. Perhaps Jordan can sneak in there. Click through for a recap of who's reporting what on the No. 1 pick.
As Cole points out, the Dolphins did not match the four-year, $36 million deal that former Dolphins left tackle Jake Long received from the St. Louis Rams. So you know they're not going to give him a $9 million a year contract, or at least they probably won't (well, this is the Dolphins after all).
This is a little late in the game to be playing chicken like this. If Albert drops his price tag, you have to wonder what other teams would've been interested in him weeks ago if they had known the price tag was lower. This looks like a case of Albert (or his rep) misjudging the market and not hearing what he wants to hear from other teams. In any other season I would've expect Albert to pull more than $8.5 million per year but this is a unique year in that the Chiefs have the top pick where the best player is a left tackle and there were multiple starting left tackles on the open market, a rarity. More supply lowers the demand, which hurts Albert's price.
Albert is at the point where he can lower his demands to get that long-term security, which he says he wants, or he can return to the Chiefs and hope to hit the market next season. My advice would be to take the money now. Don't risk it. Even if Albert gets a five-year contract in Miami, the chances of him actually playing out that full contract is very low so $7 million per year or $8.5 million per year ultimately won't make much of a difference.