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NFL

Why the Chiefs made Eric Berry the top paid safety in NFL

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs have long realized the special type of talent they have in safety Eric Berry. It’s why they selected him with the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft and why they kept him around last year as the franchise player after his rookie contract expired.

But the Chiefs saw things from Berry in 2016 they hadn’t seen before: The game-changing plays that made the difference in narrow victories and the iron will of his leadership. There was also a unanimous vote among his teammates naming him their most valuable player.

It all reinforced what the Chiefs believed about Berry and gave them the nudge this time around to give him the long-term contract that they wouldn’t hand him last year.

The Chiefs made Berry the highest-paid safety in the NFL by agreeing to terms with him on a six-year deal worth $78 million, including $40 million guaranteed and a $20 million signing bonus, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“His outstanding play on the field was rivaled only by his inspirational leadership throughout the season. … He truly is an amazing leader,” chairman Clark Hunt said on Sunday in announcing Berry as the Chiefs’ MVP.

“All of his teammates and coaches benefit from having him part of the Kansas City Chiefs.”

The Chiefs are taking a risk with the length of the contract and the amount of money. Berry is 28 years old, so his age will become a factor before the contract is finished. He’s not that far removed from a bout with lymphoma, though Berry has been cancer-free and played two full seasons since his diagnosis and treatment.

There are risks with making him the franchise player but also with setting him free — and those risks are even greater. Berry had recently drawn the line at being the franchise player for a second straight year. He said he wouldn’t play again on the franchise tag and the Chiefs certainly could have tested whether he would stick to that.

If anything, Berry is a man of his word. It would have hurt him to sit out another season of football.

Letting him walk was the other option. But that would have been the toughest path of all. Berry is Kansas City’s most valuable player in more than just title. He has played five full seasons for the Chiefs and they’ve made the playoffs four times — one miss was in 2012, when Kansas City was a full-blown 2-14 mess.

They’re 0-for-2 in reaching the postseason when he’s missed all or part of the season. The only time the Chiefs have failed to reach the playoffs under coach Andy Reid came in 2014, when Berry missed part of the season because of an ankle injury and another part because of cancer.

In that light, the Chiefs perhaps opted for the least risky option. Sure, they’re counting on a lot from Berry but the one thing they should know about him by now is that he won’t let them down.

NFL

K.C., Duvernay-Tardif reach 5-year extension

The Kansas City Chiefs and guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif have agreed to a contract extension, the team announced Tuesday.

Duvernay-Tardif’s five-year, $41.25 million extension includes $20 million in guaranteed money, a league source told ESPN’s Adam Caplan.

Chad Speck, Duvernay-Tardif’s agent, posted on Instagram about the signing Tuesday.

“Laurent has grown significantly in his three years as a professional,” Chiefs general manager John Dorsey said in a statement. “He brings a lot of mental and physical toughness to the position, and last season he was able to become a key contributor to our offense. Laurent has a bright future here.”

Duvernay-Tardif, 26, was a sixth-round draft pick of the Chiefs in 2014 out of McGill University in Montreal. He broke into the starting lineup in 2015 and is now a fixture at right guard.

He is in medical school at McGill and tends to his studies during the offseason. Since being drafted by the Chiefs, he has returned to Kansas City each year to participate in most of the team’s offseason workouts and all of the offseason practices.

Duvernay-Tardif was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2017 season.

NFL Network first reported that Duvernay-Tardif was close to an extension with the Chiefs.

The Chiefs also are making a strong push to wrap up a deal with veteran safety Eric Berry by Wednesday’s franchise tag deadline in a bid to keep him in Kansas City, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

NFL

Colts DL Parry berated officers during arrest

INDIANAPOLIS — Colts defensive lineman David Parry used a number of expletives and derogatory words toward Scottsdale, Arizona, police officers who arrested him over the weekend, according to the police report obtained by ESPN.

Parry, 24, was arrested early Saturday morning on charges of auto theft, robbery, resisting arrest, driving under the influence and criminal damage.

He allegedly hit the driver of a golf cart transporting him and two other men from a Scottsdale bar in the head and sped off in the cart. The police found Parry on the sidewalk near where he crashed the cart into the gate of an apartment complex.

Parry, whose eyes were watery and bloodshot and whose speech was slurred, laughed and thought being arrested for robbery and auto theft was comical, according to the police report. Parry antagonized the officers, using gay slurs and calling them “fat f—s,” according to officers.

Parry had a brace on his left wrist from surgery earlier in the offseason that made it difficult for the officers to handcuff him. The police had to remove the brace from Parry’s wrist to put the handcuffs on because he kept “locking his muscles and turning his body in attempts to break free from” police, according to the report.

Parry was not given a breath test because of his lack of stability and because he was “dry heaving,” as if he was going to vomit, when the officers were drawing blood from his arm, according to the police report.

Asked how much he had to drink, Parry told the officers “a lot” and “more than I should have been,” according to the report.

New Colts general manager Chris Ballard will likely address the incident when he talks to the media during the scouting combine Wednesday.

Parry, who was selected in the fifth round in 2015, has started all 32 games of his NFL career and has 78 tackles and four sacks.

NFL

Vikings decline 2017 option for RB Peterson

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Vikings will not pick up their option on Adrian Peterson’s contract for the 2017 season, the team announced Tuesday.

Peterson will become an unrestricted free agent on March 9.

Peterson, who restructured his deal with the team before the 2015 season, had an option for 2017 that would have paid him $18 million, including a $6 million roster bonus had he been on the roster on the third day of the new league year. The Vikings had until the start of the league year on March 9 to inform Peterson whether they would exercise the option.

“It’s been a great 10 years with the Minnesota Vikings,” Peterson said in a statement to ESPN’s Josina Anderson. “They know what I bring to the organization as a player, with my work ethic and dedication. I spoke with [Vikings GM] Rick Spielman this past weekend. The door is still open to find some common ground. I understand addressing the offensive line is one of their main priorities this offseason.

“In the meantime, I will explore my other options and see what path God leads me on. My main goal remains the same: to win a Super Bowl championship with a great team, which I also believe we have in Minnesota.”

Adrian Peterson, who ranks 16th in NFL history with 11,747 rushing yards, will become an unrestricted free agent on March 9 after the Vikings declined to exercise their team option for the 2017 season. AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King

It seemed inevitable the Vikings would not exercise the option on Peterson, who played just three games last season because of a torn meniscus and turns 32 on March 21. The team could still work out a restructured contract with Peterson before the start of the league year or try to re-sign him if he doesn’t find what he’s looking for on the free-agent market.

“Adrian is an important part of the Minnesota Vikings organization,” Spielman said in a statement. “We will continue to have conversations with his representatives and leave our future options open while determining what is best for both parties moving forward.”

Peterson carried 37 times for 72 yards last season, returning in less than three months from his injury on Sept. 18 to play against the Indianapolis Colts on Dec. 18. However, he sat out the Vikings’ final two games because of an adductor strain he suffered in his first game back.

He won an MVP in 2012 and ranks 16th all time with 11,747 rushing yards, but he has failed to eclipse 40 carries in two of the past three seasons because of suspension and injuries.

Peterson recently told ESPN’s First Take he would like to remain in Minnesota but would be intrigued by the Houston Texans, New York Giants and Tampa Bay Buccaneers if he becomes a free agent.

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