The best offensive lineman on the free-agent market won’t make it there, after all.
The Chiefs plan to give guard Trey Smith the franchise tag, per ESPN. The tag, which is a one-year, $23.4 million contract, will keep him out of free agency when it begins March 10.
The tag would allow the two sides to negotiate a long-term deal before a mid-July deadline.
There’s no longer a direct path for the Bears to bid on the best offensive lineman on the open market.
The Bears were among the teams intrigued by the 25-year-old Smith, who earned his first Pro Bowl berth this year and allowed not a single sack. The Bears are likely to replace their center and both starting guards this offseason.
Bears GM Ryan Poles was part of the front office that drafted him out of Tennessee. He demurred when asked for a scouting report on Smith on Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
“I’m not going to get into players who aren’t on our roster right now,” he said. “But I’m proud to be a part of that draft process.”
Asked about the Bears during Super Bowl week, Smith said he was simply worried about the game ahead.
“I’m just so focused on getting another championship with the Kansas City Chiefs, I can’t focus on anything else,” he said.
The Chiefs gave cornerback L’Jarius Sneed the franchise tag last year and traded him less than a month later, but Smith is believed to be a much higher priority, particularly after the Eagles dominated the Chiefs on the lines in the Super Bowl.
