Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry just might be the best in the business, but even if you think that Earl Thomas, Harrison Smith, or some other elite safety is better, you have to at least admit that he was the easiest “Comeback Player of the Year” winner in a long time.
Several teams are in tough situations this offseason, such as two perennial Super Bowl contenders in the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos, but the Kansas City Chiefs just might be in the most unenviable position in free agency this year.
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Eric Berry, the always-underrated Jaye Howard, top cornerback Sean Smith, top-notch pass rusher Tamba Hali, and stud inside linebacker Derrick Johnson (a CPOY contender in his own right) are all impending free agents. This shortlist doesn’t even consider other quality pieces like Mike DeVito, Jeff Allen, and Husain Abdullah.
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Free agency threatens to tear the Chiefs defense apart, and they have several important decisions to mull over. Do they slap Howard with the transition tag? Do they give Johnson $6 million per year?
But even though there are so many questions surrounding the Chiefs free agents this offseason, one question stands out above the rest, because it’s what will affect John Dorsey‘s overall strategy when it comes to retaining his own guys.
How much should the Chiefs prioritize re-signing Berry?
Look, there is no doubt that Berry is the most important of these players, and he’d be the hardest to replace. Yes, three-down linebackers like Johnson are rare, but the man is 33 and is playing a position that isn’t held in as high value as safety. Hali? He’s 32, the Chiefs have Dee Ford waiting in the wings, and they already committed even more money to Justin Houston, who is one of the best in the business at any position. Smith? The Chiefs have Marcus Peters, but he is indeed a tough man to replace. Howard? He’s great, but just how valuable are run-stuffing defensive ends?
Berry is a playmaker who can do everything you want a safety to do (blitz, defend the run, cover TEs and RBs, play deep safety, pick off passes, force fumbles, generate huge plays), and he does it all at an elite level. He’s one of those “perfect” players you fantasize about creating in Madden, and he’s coming off of a season in which he helped elevate the Chiefs into the playoffs.
By re-signing him, the Chiefs would have to spend a ridiculous amount of money, and while Berry made plenty of money on his rookie contract and could give the team a hometown discount, he deserves to be the highest-paid safety in the game. After all, you could easily argue that he’s the best safety in the league today, as he defended ten passes in 2015 while helping the Chiefs finish as the second-best team in the NFL at defending TEs and the third-best vs. RBs, per Football Outsiders.
The value that Berry brings to the table for the Chiefs defense is profound, and that’s why he’s going to be so expensive. He’s an all-around, playmaking beast who can cover and tackle anyone, wrapped up into one 27-year-old player who is in the prime of his career.
Seahawks star safety Earl Thomas makes $10 million per year on his deal, and Berry would deserve to exceed that number. The question is, will the Chiefs have to pay that amount?
Even if they are able to get away with paying Berry less than that (we saw a situation likes this develop last year when Devin McCourty took a steep discount to remain with the New England Patriots), re-signing him would force the Chiefs to let many of their other important impending free agents walk.
The Chiefs have plenty of cap space (about $30 million of it, according to Over The Cap), but that’s going to be eaten up quickly. Even so, Berry is such a dominant player at such an important position, and he’s helped boost the Chiefs so much at a team that they have to prioritize him above everyone else.
If that means sacrificing on Hali, Smith, or Johnson, then, so be it. The Chiefs can’t keep everyone, but if re-signing Berry means losing out on two impending free agents instead of just one, then they still have to keep him.
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I hesitate to use the phrase “at all costs” here due to the caliber of the other players that the Chiefs stand to lose to free agency, but Berry really is that vital.
He spent the entire season taking RBs and TEs out of the equation, and, in all honesty, I don’t think the Chiefs will let him leave. Berry is too valuable, and, yes, the remarkable story behind him is a factor here. Because if this is what he can do in his first season back, then imagine what he can do in 2016 as a star who is just hitting his ripest years.
Remember, he’s everyone’s dream free agent catch for a reason.