KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Safety Eric Berry played the 2016 season for the Chiefs as their franchise player, but once apparently is enough.
Berry told NFL Network he wouldn’t play for the Chiefs under the franchise tag again in 2017.
“I’m definitely not going to play under the franchise tag this year,” Berry said. “I want to end my career in Kansas City. I want to play there. I love the city, I love the vibe. I love my teammates. I really look at them more than teammates. We’ve been through a lot, and they supported me a lot.
“But I don’t feel comfortable playing under the franchise tag this year.”
The Chiefs designated Berry as their franchise player last year after the sides couldn’t agree on a long-term contract. Berry skipped the offseason practices and the early portion of training camp but eventually signed the Chiefs’ mandatory one-year contract worth about $10.8 million.
Berry, 28, had perhaps his best NFL season. He returned an interception for a touchdown to spark a fourth-quarter rally to beat the Carolina Panthers in November and returned one for a touchdown and another for two points to lead to a win over the Atlanta Falcons in December.
Berry, speaking before an NFL Play 60 event in the Kansas City area last week, told ESPN he wanted to remain with Kansas City and that the Chiefs had been in contact with his agent only the day before.
HOUSTON — There are times when Richard Smith’s coaching “style” can feel like 99 parts “tough” and one part “love,” but the Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator saw a need this past offseason and a remedy.
Smith believed the Falcons needed more sacks, more impact plays, more everything from defensive end Vic Beasley Jr., so Smith asked one of the better pass-rushers he’s ever coached – Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller – for an assist.
“I’ve watched [Beasley] before, in college, then in Atlanta, I knew all about him,” Miller said. “But Coach Smith kind of put us together in the offseason when I was talking to him. And I’ve been calling, texting [Beasley] since. He’s one of my guys now. I feel like I have a great relationship. But when Coach Smith wants something, you know, I’ll do that.”
Toss Smith’s name at Miller and you will almost certainly get a smile, followed by Miller shaking his head with a “ah, Coach Smith …”
Smith was Miller’s first position coach in the NFL after the Broncos made Miller the No. 2 pick of the 2011 draft. Smith, who uses plenty of what Miller has called “get-your-attention language,” had the task of taking an immensely gifted player and turning him into a well-rounded pro.
It was much the same task Smith and the rest of the Falcons’ defensive coaches faced with Beasley, who was the eighth pick of the 2015 draft. Beasley’s rookie year often played out at the intersection of potential and transition, given he finished the year with flashes of what he could do to go with just four sacks.
“People were all over him last year, saying ‘he’s a bust, he’s a bust,”’ Smith said. “He said at the end of the year he was tired of answering all these questions, and I said, ‘Well, let’s do something about it.”’
In his second season, Vic Beasley Jr. had 15 1/2 sacks and six forced fumbles for the NFC champion Falcons. Photo by Josh Lefkowitz/Getty Images
So, they got to work, Beasley said. They worked to get Beasley stronger, worked to know more about what blockers wanted to do in each situation and they worked to find the player Smith said “you know is in there.” And the almost weekly conversations with Miller were also part of the improvement.
“He’s like my brother,” Miller said. “You see what he can do. I feel like if he wants to bounce things off me, we just talk. But the sky’s the limit for him; he’s still got more to show.”
“I saw a lot of similarities in our games when I was coming into the draft,” Beasley said. “And I think almost every week we would talk, and I think this offseason we might get together to work out.”
The arrival of Dwight Freeney to the Falcons has had an impact on Beasley as well, given Freeney’s knowledge of how offenses attack impact pass-rushers and his ability to explain what pass-rushers can do in those situations.
To rise to those kinds of moments, Beasley knows he’ll have to find a way to deal with attention from the Patriots on Sunday. He led the team by an 11-sack margin – Adrian Clayborn, who finished the season on injured reserve, was second on the team with 4.5 – and understands what’s headed his way.
“I look forward to the matchups,” Beasley said. “I worked extremely hard in the offseason. Coaches spent a lot of time with me, and Dwight brought a lot to the team. … He’s a great leader and I think he had lot do with a lot our success this year. … I’m just going into it with a relentless approach. … It’s the kind of situation you always want to play in; it’s for a championship.”
Real Madrid’s training ground featured a number of familiar faces Thursday, as Marcelo and Luka Modric returned to practice.
The pair took part in regular training with their Real teammates for the first time since suffering knocks during a victory over Malaga on Jan. 21.
Modric has been dealing with a right abductor strain, as Marcelo works his way back from a hamstring injury.
Meanwhile, Gareth Bale and Dani Carvajal managed to boost their recovery efforts by taking part in a reduced session for the first time since going down with hamstring and ankle injuries, respectively.
??? #RMCity ? @MarceloM12 and @lm19official have returned to group training! ? @GarethBale11 and @DaniCarvajal92 continue their recoveries. pic.twitter.com/5HKpriRXA3
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadriden) February 2, 2017
The positive news comes two days after Pepe and James Rodriguez returned to training after calf knocks sidelined the two.
Real will look to maintain its four-point edge over Barcelona and Sevilla when Zinedine Zidane’s men take on Celta Vigo.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera said Thursday during an appearance on ESPN’s NFL Insiders that the organization probably will have to use the franchise tag on Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kawann Short.
Short is an unrestricted free agent after the Panthers couldn’t reach a long-term deal with him prior to the 2016 season.
Rivera said general manager Dave Gettleman already has had salary-cap meetings, and the best way to guarantee Short remains on the roster is with the tag.
“Obviously, we’ll probably have to tag him,” Rivera said. “But if we do, so be it. If not, I think they can get a deal done and I’m pretty optimistic about that because KK is a big part of what we do.
DT Kawann Short said after Carolina’s season finale that he would be all right with the franchise tag, though it is not his first choice. He also reiterated, “I want to be a Carolina Panther.” Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP Photo
“Again, we believe up front is the most important part of your team. You’ve got to be able to stop the run, rush the passer, and I think KK is one of those guys who has that kind of ability.”
The estimated tag for a defensive tackle in 2017 is $13.5 million. Short, who led Carolina with 11 sacks in 2015, was believed to have been seeking a deal similar to the $17.1 million per year the Philadelphia Eagles gave Fletcher Cox last year.
Short, Carolina’s second-round pick in 2013, fell to six sacks this past season when the Panthers went 6-10.
Short said after the season finale that he would be all right with the franchise tag, although that is not his first choice.
“Everybody would like to avoid that,” he said. “If it happens, it happens. If it happens, I’m still going to be professional about the situation.”
Short said he doesn’t plan to follow in the footsteps of former Carolina cornerback Josh Norman, who didn’t sign the tag when Gettleman used it last season and didn’t participate in the start of offseason workouts.
Gettleman then rescinded the tag, and Norman signed with the Washington Redskins.
“Me and Josh are two different people,” Short said the day players cleaned out their lockers. “We walk two totally different sides of the street, at two totally different places, in two totally different directions.
“Me and Josh are not the same.”
Short reminded that Norman “could have stayed here if he wanted.”
He also reminded, when asked if he wanted to test free agency, that he wants to remain in Carolina.
“I want to be a Carolina Panther,” he said. “That’s it.”
