More Branden Albert talk: Why we should give him a fat contract if he plays guard

[RealSNR]

I think at this point the Chiefs need to go this direction with him rather than working to trade him. He's a valuable offensive linemen whether you think he's top 5, top 15, or even just meh. The Chiefs as of late haven't exactly been very lucky with drafting guards and finding replacements via free agency. The interior line needs to either do some gelling or we need to seek out replacements. Albert at LG (or RT) would help out tremendously.

I think we can afford to pay Albert what he wanted to play LT in Miami, and just make him one of the highest paid guards or RTs in the game. From the sportrac link that patteeu posted, here are the average salaries of the top 5 guards:

Carl Nicks (Bucs) $9,500,000
Logan Mankins (Pats) $8,500,000
Jahri Evans (Saints) $8,100,000
Andy Levitre (Titans) $7,800,000
Davin Joseph (Bucs) $7,500,000

I can't remember the exact figures Albert was supposedly seeking from Miami, but I believe it was around 5 years 50 million? 50-55 million?

Andy Levitre signed a 5 year 60 million with 27.5 million guaranteed. Depending on the guaranteed money, Albert would still receive less than that.

We also need to pay other players. However, perhaps not quite so immediately. We're in fairly good shape for the next two years. 2016 is a cluster****ing mess, but we're doing okay in the meantime:

Players and when their contracts will expire

Red = Player we might need to worry about extending or replacing

2014
Tyson Jackson
Branden Albert
Dexter McCluster
Javier Arenas
Jon Asamoah
Tony Moeaki
Kendrick Lewis
Terrance Copper
Geoff Schwartz
Husain Abdullah
Thomas Gafford

2015
Alex Smith
Johnathan Baldwin
Rodney Hudson
Justin Houston
Allen Bailey
Jalil Brown
Ricky Stanzi
Jerrell Powe
Tysyn Hartman

2016
Eric Berry
Tamba Hali
Derrick Johnson
Jamaal Charles
Sean Smith
Dunta Robinson
Mike Devito
Dontari Poe
Chase Daniel
Donnie Avery
Jeff Allen
Cory Greenwood
Donald Stephenson
Devon Wylie
Dequan Menzie
Cyrus Gray

Without any knowledge of how the cap will lay out in the coming seasons and what player contracts will do, it's impossible to know what kind of position we'll be in. A lot of the players on these lists are pretty interchangeable with rookies/free agents we bring in and out. Many of them could be cut immediately in Reid's first training camp.

However, given the expected ages of some of these players in 2016, I still think we're in okay shape. An extension wouldn't be as big of a deal if we still wanted to keep them around at a lower veteran salary. Or, we could just let them walk, which may need to happen especially with Hali, Johnson, or even Charles (no telling what wear and tear a RB will sustain in the coming years)

Essentially, I think it boils down to two MUST re-sign players: Eric Berry and Justin Houston. It's possible to keep guys we (may) like such as Asamoah, Hudson, Schwartz, and Poe. But for only two players that will demand some sizeable contracts, that's not bad.

It's why I think especially after some rich deals like Hali's and Alex Smith's are either re-structured or taken off, we can afford to keep Albert on a fat deal. And given the headache of trying to trade his ass, we could also just let him walk after this year, but I think he can still be pretty damn valuable to this team.

The key is of course if Albert is content with hush money. Time will tell if he backs down from his stance of "I'm a LT, damn it!"