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Every other week or so this offseason, either Kansas City Chiefs GM John Dorsey or head coach Andy Reid will do some media and they will undoubtedly be asked about a contract extension for Alex Smith, who is entering the final year of his contract.
And every time Dorsey or Reid are asked about it, they say they're confident a new contract will get done. Reports that things are moving slowly haven't gained much traction at this point.
Reid was the latest member of the Chiefs brass to say that he's confident a deal for Smith will get done.
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"I've always believed that if there's open communication, then normally good things happen," Reid said on NFL AM. "So, I'm sure something will get done. I can't put a time frame on that, but I'm sure something will get done."
Assuming a new deal for Smith is inevitable, doing something before the season makes the most sense. I'm not a big believer that "distractions" make much of a difference to wins and losses but it would be nice to have this behind them before entering the season. That said, I wouldn't mind waiting until after the season to do a new deal because part of the bonus of trading for Smith is that his contract is not that big compared to other quarterbacks. So my thinking is, however it works out, the Chiefs should take advantage of his low-ish salary this season.
There is no hard deadline at this point. Smith will become a free agent next March but surely the Chiefs have a plan in place if it gets to that point. An option next offseason would be the franchise tag, which was just over $16 million in 2014. If it stays around that number, the Chiefs are looking at roughly $24 million to keep Smith the next two seasons, combining his 2014 salary and the potential cost of a 2015 franchise tag.
Meanwhile, at Chiefs OTAs today ...
Andy Reid told NFL Network this morning that he’s optimistic an extension will get done with Smith before the season. Smith agreed.
— Terez A. Paylor (@TerezPaylor) May 27, 2014