Several teams are facing difficult decisions at this point in the NFL offseason schedule with the franchise tag period open. The Houston Texans have to decide what to do about Mario Williams. The Raiders have Michael Bush. The Colts have Robert Mathis. But no one has a tougher decision, according to Jason La Canfora, than the Kansas City Chiefs.
The reason is that they have two impact players available, each on a different side of the ball. The Chiefs defense won several games for the team last season and is the strongest point, so do they weaken it by allowing young cornerback Brandon Carr to potentially walk in free agency? Then again, the offense already has major investments alongside Dwayne Bowe with Steve Breaston and Jon Baldwin in tow. Should they really franchise yet another receiver?
La Canfora writes, “The Chiefs have two options in cornerback Brandon Carr and receiver Dwayne Bowe — and they need both players. I’m not sure how much should be read into the Chiefs’ recent interest in free agent Stanford Routt. A strong case could be made for either player here, and the difference between the franchise tags is negligible given the massive cap space Kansas City is sitting on (the corner tag is about $1.2 million higher than the receiver tag). This might be the toughest decision for any team vis-à-vis the franchise tag, especially given the Chiefs’ needs. New head coach Romeo Crennel is a defensive guy.”
There’s a good argument to be made on both sides and it’s something the Chiefs have likely went over ad nauseum leading up to this point. Fans will soon learn where the team has placed their priorities and where they plan to bolster the team in other areas with their decision. Then again, there’s enough cap room to keep both and make everyone happy.