Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt spoke to a reporter from the Star-Telegram in Dallas on Tuesday. Audio of their conversation is below which includes a bunch of soccer talk (FC Dallas) as well as a few Chiefs questions from reporter Mac Englel.
I highlighted the Chiefs portion of the Q&A below. Note that on the Eric Berry section Clark says these negotiations often come down to deadlines. Free agency is in March but if the Chiefs use the franchise tag on Berry, the “real” deadline would be July 15, the final day to sign franchise tagged players to a long-term deal.
The Eric Berry contract talks
Clark Hunt: “I think Eric wants to be a Kansas City Chief. We’ve been blessed to have him as a Chief for the last six years. He’s a tremendous player, tremendous leader. I believe that he wants to come back to Kansas City and he knows that we want to have him back. Obviously, the negotiations are always difficult. A lot of times they come down to deadlines. We are working very hard and we have very good communication with his representative and hopefully we’ll have Eric signed certainly well in advance of this season.”
The Andy Reid contract talks
Clark: Hunt: “Coach Reid has another year on his contract with us. I know that he likes being in Kansas City. I’ve enjoyed working with him over the last four years. He’s done a tremendous job for us. I’m very hopeful that he’ll want to extend his tenure with us beyond this season.”
The Chiefs taking the next step
Clark Hunt: “I think the most important thing is make sure you’re giving yourself the opportunity and the way you do that is make the playoffs, something we have done three of the last four years ... I don’t think it’s any one thing. Part of the answer though is experience in the playoffs. That is a big advantage because certainly the speed of the game and the intensity of the game goes to a higher level when you make the playoffs. If you have players and a coaching staff that have been there and participated in that environment that’s going to help them be successful. I’m very optimistic as we enter 2017 that we have a roster that can get back to the playoffs. And if you’re in the playoffs, anything can happen.”