The Kansas City Chiefs are down to a single unsigned rookie in their 2016 draft class: Notre Dame DB KeiVarae Russell. Even his status shouldn't last long, and perhaps he'll even sign his first NFL deal while I'm writing this story. The drama is gone from the NFL these days when it comes to rookie holdouts. Even professional holdouts don't seem to happen as much these days (although I certainly haven't taken an official poll to gauge the accuracy of that sentiment).
Any fan who misses holdouts has something wrong with them, of course. Fewer things are more frustrating than watching billionaires and millionaires fighting it out over money. That said, since we don't talk much about holdouts anymore, it seemed like a good time to reflect back on the most memorable holdouts in team history.
1. Larry Johnson, 2007
In 2007, Carl Peterson faced a quandary: whether or not to pay his franchise running back an exorbitant amount of money. Larry Johnson, initially drafted as insurance behind Priest Holmes, became the team's MVP in 2005 and came into the 2007 season hungry for more money. The Chiefs ran LJ into the ground in 2006, to the tune of a league-leading 416 attempts. Even 10 years ago, running backs knew their life span was shorter than other positions, so it wasn't surprising to see Johnson want more money or even decide to hold out to do so.
Johnson missed the first two preseason games and the first 25 days of training camp that summer, but offseason contests watching Kolby Smith and Michael Bennett proved too much to handle. Peterson caved and inked Johnson to a 6-year, $45 million extension. The $19 million in guaranteed money was the largest contract ever given out at the time by the Chiefs.
Johnson ran for 559 yards that season, missing eight games with a foot injury. The decline only continued from there, and the Chiefs released LJ in 2009 after averaging a paltry 2.9 yards/carry through seven starts.
2. Dan Williams, 1998
Let's be honest about Larry Johnson's holdout: it mattered very little. A veteran Pro Bowler reporting before the third preseason game is nothing compared to a Dan Williams-sized holdout.
The Denver Broncos made Williams their first round pick in the 1993 draft after the Toledo product produced 60 tackles for loss and 28 sacks in his collegiate career. Injuries prohibited him from ever reaching his potential with Denver, and they cut him loose in 1997 after his rookie contract ended. Williams ended his Broncos' career with four sacks in 39 games.
The Chiefs signed Williams on a 1-year flier and reaped the rewards in 1997 to the tune of a team-leading 10.5 sacks. Given the level of production, the team placed the franchise designation on Williams that offseason, a move that didn't sit well with the defensive end. Williams decided to hold out for a long-term contract.
At one point, my favorite report (that I could find in all of this) is that at some point during his holdout, Williams moved to Atlanta and didn't even give the Chiefs his new phone number! Williams ended up sitting out the entire 2008 season, and the Chiefs were the ones who caved in the end. Williams signed a 6-year, $28 million deal to return in 2009. Unfortunately, Williams dealt with injuries and inconsistent production over the next two years for the Chiefs. He played two more seasons with the team, amassing 12.5 sacks in 26 games, before being released in 2011.
3. John Tait, 1999
Back in 1999, crazy things were happening. Y2K. Boy bands. The best offensive tackles in the NFL Draft actually fell, all the way to No. 14 overall in this case. The Chiefs took BYU's John Tait with their first-round choice, but proceeded to play hardball with the Mormon kid and his Mormon family.
The issue was how much the guy at No. 15 was making. Anthony "Booger" McFarland somehow landed a 5-year, $8.5 million contract from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, an incredible $2.3 million *more* than the guy taken at No. 13, Troy Edwards. Given that Tait sat in the middle, you can understand the quandary on both sides.
Carl Peterson handled it about as well as a guest on the Jerry Springer show. When they couldn't come to terms like Peterson thought they were going to in one negotiating session, he lost it. "This is an embarrassment, you've haven't even put on the (bleep) pads. If you don't like it, you can go back in the (bleep) draft," Peterson told Tait and his agent, Ethan Lock.
Tait's response? "He lost control. I don't know if he was trying to intimidate me or what." Tait played only 12 games in 1999 and started 3. However, he became a starting tackle for the Chiefs the following year and enjoyed a very steady career in the NFL for the Chiefs and Chicago Bears over 10 NFL seasons.
4. Tony Gonzalez, 2002
Speaking of nasty interactions with Carl Peterson, Tony Gonzalez, the team's poster child and franchise favorite, took out his frustrations on the team's front office (and specifically Peterson) by holding out of Chiefs training camp in 2002. As the Chiefs leading receiver year after year, Gonzalez, then a 3-time Pro Bowler, wanted to be paid like the league's leading wideouts rather than using tight ends as fair comparisons. He missed all of training camp to make his point, but settled for a 1-year, $2.9 million deal in the end.
Six years later, Tony Gonzalez went public once again with his frustrations over Carl Peterson's tactics in the front office. Gonzalez had wanted out of Kansas City via a trade but he wasn't moved at the deadline during the 2008 season. "I'm not the first guy that's felt like he's been wronged around here. Ask Jared Allen. Ask a lot of guys. Ask John Tait," Gonzalez said. "That's what happens."
5. James Hasty, 1997
It's easy to forget just how good James Hasty was — and for how long. The Kansas City Chiefs signed Hasty heading into his age-30 season after he spent 7 years with the New York Jets. Hasty went on to start 90 games for the Chiefs over 6 seasons, an incredible run for any player but especially so in the secondary. Heading into the '97 season, Hasty felt underappreciated and wanted the Chiefs to re-do his deal. Carl Peterson wasn't having any of it.
Hasty returned to Chiefs training camp after missing two weeks, and when he arrived it was clear he'd been told to shut up and show up. "There is my side to the story. I've been told not to tell it."
6. Dwayne Bowe, 2012
This was another recent holdout that really didn't move the needle much on the holdout-o-meter. Bowe was the recipient of the franchise tag heading into the 2012 season — a one-year, $9.5 million total — but Bowe wanted more after posting consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. (To his credit, Bowe did have a laughable carousel at quarterback during his KC tenure.) When it came to late July, Bowe refused to show up and ended up holding out until the team reported back from St. Joseph, before the third preseason game.
When John Dorsey came aboard to replace Scott Pioli as the Chiefs GM, it signalled a serious change in approach with Bowe. Dorsey shelled out a 5-year, $56 million contract for Bowe only to release him outright exactly two seasons later.
7. Justin Houston, 2011, 2014, 2015?
The Chiefs best defensive player has also been voted Most Likely To Hold Out since he first entered the NFL. Houston, a player with clear first-round potential, fell to the third round in 2011 and clearly didn't like losing all that money. Houston was one of the last two draft picks to sign in 2011 after holding out a week of Chiefs training camp. In 2012, Houston admitted the drama put him behind in his rookie season.
Fast forward to 2014 and Houston is still fascinated with holding out. This time, he's proved himself both model citizen and elite defender. Houston skipped mandatory mini-camp and the lack of summertime storylines led every NFL site to run with "Houston could hold out in Kansas City" headlines leading up to training camp. Fortunately it didn't come to that.
One offseason later, Justin Houston is faced with the franchise tag while waiting on a potential long-term deal. Enter the same paranoia.
Per league source, Justin Houston already is considering waiting until Week 10 to sign franchise tender to stay with Chiefs.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) March 2, 2015
Fortunately Dorsey knew he needed to get a long-term deal done with one of the NFL's best pass rushers and locked him out. Now we can only hope Houston has gotten over the idea of holding out anytime in the near future.
8. Jamaal Charles, 2014
On July 22, 2014, KCTV-5 reported that Jamaal Charles was prepared to holdout from reporting from Chiefs training camp for more money. On July 23, he signed a 2-year, $18.1 million extension. The quickest non-holdout in team history.
I had no intention on holding out...I just ran out of gas on the way to camp and my cell phone battery died. It was a long walk I tell ya.
— Jamaal Charles (@jcharles25) July 23, 2014