Lovie Smith promised more takeaways in his first season as coach and, if Friday night goes as expected for the Bears, none would be any bigger than his first.
Kansas City has until 10:40 p.m. to decide whether to match the Bears’ offer sheet to right offensive tackle John Tait that would pry away part of the best offensive line in the NFL. More than one Bears official indicated they will celebrate nothing until 10:41.
The Bears do know their bold decision seven days ago to offer Tait a shrewdly structured six-year, $33 million contract that includes a $14 million bonus and counts $11.5 million against the cap rankled the Chiefs. Sources from both teams have acknowledged that privately and, as one Bears official put it, “there will be no love lost.”
It would be fine with the Bears if the Chiefs stop talking to them, at least for a day, starting Friday.
If the Bears hear nothing from Kansas City before the deadline, that will mean Tait is a Bear. If the Chiefs surprise league observers and decide to match, then NFL rules require them to inform the Bears and the league office in writing.
Unless Dick Vermeil has perfected the art of the bluff in the multi-million-dollar poker game that is free-agency, the Chiefs are resigned to letting Tait go.
Earlier this week, Kansas City interviewed possible right tackle replacements such as free agents Chris Bober of the Giants and Barry Stokes of the Browns.
On Wednesday, they played host to cornerback Troy Vincent, who likely would eat up what little remaining space the Chiefs have under the salary cap.
Vermeil didn’t sound like a coach planning to keep his offensive line in tact when he said in Thursday’s edition of the Kansas City Star that “it would be very hard to justify” matching the offer for Tait.
“If they determine he’s of that value in Chicago, then I’m happy for him,” Vermeil said. “The person that determines the value of the player is the team that writes the contract. It just takes one team. It doesn’t take every team to agree on it.
“It certainly doesn’t help us to lose him. We have to determine to the best we can how to shorten the amount of time it takes to get back to where we were with him playing.”
The Bears would be getting a player Vermeil described as a diligent self-starter whose effort always matched his ability, a finished product who’s no longer a work in progress.
“I have tremendous respect for John Tait,” Vermeil said. “I admire his toughness and tenacity and perseverance. He passed through a plateau last year to become a better player. It wasn’t automatic. He had to work at it.
“He’s a guy I can make a tape of. I can say [to other players], `Look at him three years ago and look at him two years ago and then look at him now.’ Why? Because he worked his butt off. I can show any young offensive lineman, `Look what you can make of yourself.”‘
The Bears plan to make Tait the anchor of their offensive line at right tackle.
If the Bears also sign left tackle Ephraim Salaam–with whom they had talks Thursday–that would give them two starting tackles with 151 combined starts.
That would provide stability necessary for young quarterback Rex Grossman and represent a significant upgrade for an offense that can go nowhere but up.
