Yesterday at the eleventh hour, the Kansas City Chiefs officially announced the much-rumored move that placed the franchise tag on Dwayne Bowe, the team’s free agent wide receiver. In doing so, they secure his services. Chris Burke of Sports Illustrated says it was the right move for the Chiefs, but it also made several other receivers very happy.
Burke writes, "Kansas City waited until the last minutes before the 4:00 p.m. ET franchise-tag deadline before making sure Bowe would be back for 2012. It was a no-brainer decision for the Chiefs, who need Bowe’s play-making ability on their offense.
“The move did, however, eliminate yet another potential free agent from this year’s class. With Bowe, Welker and DeSean Jackson tagged and Stevie Johnson re-signed, several big names have to be crossed off the list. What will that mean for guys like Vincent Jackson, Marques Colston and Brandon Lloyd? Probably big things for their wallets.”
The Chiefs could have reached for similar targets on the market, but when a player has already made such an impact and knows the system and team, there’s no reason to make a switch. Bowe was definitely the best receiver option out of anyone the Chiefs could bring in this off-season and there was no way the team could afford to lose him.