In case you didn’t know ... the Chiefs signed Laurent Duvernay-Tardif to a five-year, $41.25 million extension earlier this week.
Right off the bat it seems like $41.25 million is a lot for a guard. It had quite a few Chiefs fans scratching their heads, to say the least. But if you look a bit deeper, KC is only committing $20 million guaranteed to LDT with the rest of the structure of the contract unknown.
Anyway, whether you agree with the deal or not (it’s OK not to), Kansas City seems to have secured their offensive line for at least 2017. Here’s a quick breakdown of contract situations for the current Chiefs o-line (based on the depth chart on Chiefs.com).
- LT, Eric Fisher: signed through 2021
- LG, Zach Fulton: signed through 2017
- C, Mitch Morse: signed through 2018
- RG, LDT (with new deal): signed through 2022
- RT, Mitchell Schwartz: signed through 2020
From that right there, the biggest question mark for the future becomes Fulton. Drafted in 2014, Fulton is set to make a base salary of $690,000 in 2017. We’ll see what the Chiefs decide to do with him since he becomes an UFA in 2018.
Morse, drafted in the second round in 2015, is an UFA in 2019 at age 26. He’ll be another name to watch this year at to see how he performs and (hopefully) improves at center.
The Chiefs are showing their commitment to LDT at the guard position with his new contract. LDT would be one of the higher-paid guards in the NFL, so this deal is a testament to how John Dorsey and the rest of management feels about his potential. That’s where things can get dicey, though ... it’s a gamble to put this much money out there based on potential, although Dorsey said he thinks LDT has a large upside.
There still remains a couple question marks on the line (Fulton and Morse), but Dorsey definitely wants to build the line around Fisher, LDT and Schwartz. That’s the kind of stability they want.
“The stability of the o-line is going to help us tremendously and allow us to play at our full potential,” said LDT after he signed his contract when asked about continuity on the line. “Just last year, developing chemistry with Mitchell Schwartz and Mitch Morse, it’s just a great fit.
“I think Mitch and Mitch on both side of me, is a really good fit, and I’m looking forward to playing with them for a couple more years.”