Justin Houston Reportedly Signs New Contract with Kansas City Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro outside linebacker Justin Houston reportedly signed a six-year, $101 million deal with the team with $52.5 million guaranteed, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter on July 15. Schefter noted the contract was the richest in Chiefs history and the richest of all time for a linebacker.

The 26-year-old and Kansas City had been in negotiations since April, when the team gave Houston the franchise tag. The linebacker missed the team's minicamp workouts in mid-June, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, in an effort to convince the Chiefs to give him a deal. 

Talks heated up as Wednesday's deadline approached; on July 14, Rapoport reported the Chiefs were optimistic of getting a deal done, noting the team had made a "big commitment."

Houston led the NFL with 22 sacks in 2014, just short of Michael Strahan's single-season record of 22.5. Pro Football Focus' Jeff Ratcliffe added more context to Houston's monster year:

Such production merited a huge payday. Initially unable to strike an agreement on a multiyear deal, Kansas City slapped the franchise tag on Houston, which would've paid him a little over $13 million in 2015, per Spotrac.

K.C. doesn't have many other viable edge-rushers with Tamba Hali aging and Dee Ford a possible first-round bust.

The secondary is solid, but having someone such as Houston makes life for the defensive backfield much easier. Thankfully for Kansas City, head coach Andy Reid and the rest of his team, they won't know what it's like to not have Houston in the lineup come Week 1.