Justin Houston's New Contract Gives Chiefs Premier Pass-Rusher for Years to Come

Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker Justin Houston has recorded 33 sacks since 2013, which is a herculean feat over such a short period of time. With Houston, however, the time allotted was even shorter.

Houston missed five weeks in 2013 with a dislocated elbow, meaning he reached his league-leading sack total over the past two seasons—yes, more than the Texans’ J.J. Watt—while appearing in only 27 games.

That kind of pass-rushing talent comes at a heavy financial price. Or in Houston’s case, a historic one, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported:

Take a minute to let those numbers sink in, and don’t forget to blink.

The Chiefs had slapped the franchise tag on Houston, which set the baseline for long-term contract negotiations. Had the former third-round pick played in 2015 under the tag, he would have been paid a fully guaranteed $13.195 million. Now, the Chiefs have spoken the language of money while telling their young quarterback wrangler he’s the centerpiece of their defense, and they need to pay him accordingly for many years.

Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com has further details on the mounds of cash Houston will pocket. You might need another minute, and this time, remember to breathe:

For perspective, prior to Houston’s contract extension, Clay Matthews of the Green Bay Packers was the NFL’s highest-paid 3-4 outside linebacker based on average yearly contract value, according to Over the Cap. He received $20.5 million in guaranteed money on his contract signed in 2013, considerably less than Houston.

But it’s important to remember context, as your basic motor skills now begin to return, in explaining why the Chiefs needed to rewrite history.

As the salary cap continues to rise, former historic contract highs will constantly be crumpled into a tiny ball and deposited in the nearest trash receptacle. Team spending is capped at $143.28 million for 2015, a limit that’s jumped $20 million since 2013 and has risen 67 percent over the past decade.

The top of the money mountains, where the best players at every position reside, will grow to higher peaks as the cap soars and the NFL maintains its juggernaut status.

But most of all, consider Houston’s age. He’s only 26 and has already collected three double-digit-sack campaigns, which include coming only a half-sack shy of tying Michael Strahan’s single-season record.

The career arcs of premier pass-rushers can often be scattered and unpredictable, though generally a noticeable decline doesn’t come until at least the age of 30. That means the Chiefs were preparing to pay for potentially (and likely) four more prime years of quarterback chasing from Houston. Which is why he wanted Watt-type money and why he received it.

Pass-rusher	Age	Guaranteed money	Average/year
Justin Houston	26	$52.5 million	$16.8 million
J.J. Watt	26	$51.9 million	$16.7 million

The total value of Houston’s deal is the second largest ever for a defensive player behind only the Dolphins’ Ndamukong Suh. Forget just defense, though, and look at the whole league. When you do that, financially, Houston is right where he belongs: among the best as one of only five non-quarterbacks set to earn over $16 million annually.

As Bleacher Report's Jason Cole reported, Houston was able to get those historic dollars by creating leverage. He threatened to hold out into the season and miss up to 10 games, and the Chiefs believed him.

Any investment that size is accompanied by risk, from the simple reality of injuries to the fear of declining performance in later years. But the Chiefs will gladly absorb whatever minimal risk Houston presents and lock up a game-altering pass-rusher until his age-32 season.

Sacks can admittedly be a surface-level metric at times, because even the most imposing edge-rushers such as Watt and Houston will come up empty-handed during the overwhelming majority of their defensive snaps. Houston, for example, recorded a sack on just over 2 percent of his snaps in 2014, a season when he threatened the all-time single-season high.

The best pass-rushers are those who seem to create a constant whirlwind of chaos even when they don’t reach the quarterback. They generate consistent disruption, driving deep into the pocket on nearly every snap, and the double-teams they warrant lead to opportunities for others.

Houston has that sort of presence, as he recorded 13 more total pressures (combined sacks, quarterback hits and hurries) in 2014 than his closest competition.

Outside linebacker	Total pressures
Justin Houston	87
Ryan Kerrigan	73
Pernell McPhee	64
Terrell Suggs	57
Elvis Dumervil	56

Speaking to KCChiefs.com's BJ Kissel, Houston said of his game:

"

I try to be the best at everything I do. I look at other athletes, like LeBron James is one of my favorite athletes. I see his size, his ability, but he doesn’t just focus on scoring. He plays defense, he wants to do it all. That's what I've been wanting to do on the football field, I want to do it all. If I've got to cover somebody, I want to be one of the best covering outside linebackers I can be, the best run stopper I can be, the best pass rusher I can be. I want to be the best in all things.

"

Securing a player of Houston’s caliber is always a priority, but the need was even greater for Kansas City with fellow outside linebacker Tamba Hali aging and fading. Hali finished with only six sacks in 2014, the second-lowest single-season total of his nine-year career.

Dee Ford, a 2014 first-round pick, is waiting to ascend and take snaps away from Hali. But a veteran defensive anchor up front is critical for a team that relies on defense and pounding the ball with running back Jamaal Charles as its core foundation.

The Chiefs defense has recorded 93 sacks since Houston’s surge began in 2013. Now, an irreplaceable force rivaled only by Watt isn’t going anywhere for a long, long time.