Chiefs’ Orlando Brown Jr. practices: ‘I want to finish my career here in Kansas City’

Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. says he still would like to be with the team long-term, even after the two sides failed to agree to a contract extension this offseason.

“I want to be here. I want to finish my career here in Kansas City,” Brown told reporters Tuesday. “And I’m sure there are questions out there. But to me, man, with the contract situation, it just wasn’t enough guarantees. And I want to be here for the rest of my career in Kansas City. That’s really important to me.”

Brown reported to training camp on Monday, then went through his first limited practice Tuesday after missing last week. Brown, who will be playing on the $16.7 million franchise tag, was not subject to fines for missing team activities before this week because he had not yet signed the tender.

Because the two sides failed to get a deal before July 15, they cannot return to long-term negotiations until after the 2022 season.

Chiefs general manager Brett Veach told The Star last week that the team still hoped to pursue a long-term pact with Brown after this season ended.

“This is the business side. It’s not always pretty, but it’s reality,” Veach said Thursday, talking about the two sides not coming to terms on an extension. “But that won’t at all limit our want or desire to put this behind us and then hopefully get something done next year with him.”

NFL Network’s Mike Garafalo previously reported, citing a source, that the Chiefs offered Brown $91 million over five years ($18.2 million annually, an amount that would’ve ranked sixth among NFL left tackles and eighth among all tackles). A sixth year at the back end of the contract would’ve ostensibly been worth $40 million-plus, Garafalo wrote, citing the source, but was never meant to be paid; instead, it would’ve served as an artificial way for Brown to say he’d signed the largest contract for a tackle in terms of average annual value.

Brown said Tuesday that he decided to report to Chiefs practice this week because he understood the importance coach Andy Reid placed upon the first week of practices with full pads.

“It just didn’t feel right sitting at home missing out on this,” Brown said. “This is something that I want to be a part of, man. I was brought here to help win Super Bowls, and this week is very important to our progression.”

Brown attempted to keep in shape this offseason by playing tennis while also swimming twice a week. He reported that he “felt good” during Tuesday’s hot and humid practice before sitting out the latter portion as the team eased him back.

“I was excited to get out there and get some live reps. Obviously I’ve been doing a ton of stuff, training on my own and things like that,” Brown said. “But it felt good to get out there with the guys.”

Brown said remaining away from the team during previous organized team activities and minicamps over the summer was sometimes challenging.

“I pride myself on being a leader. I pride myself on being someone that wants to be here for his teammates and showing up every day, bringing the most positive energy that I can bring to the locker room and on the field,” Brown said. “So it was difficult to be away from it for so long, but the understanding was that I had to do what I had to do.”

Brown said he appreciated his teammates’ recent support, which included quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

“I’ve spoke to a lot of people here in the front office and Coach (Andy) Reid and everyone understands, man. I love ball. I love blocking for Pat Mahomes, I love putting the Chiefs logo on my helmet, man. And I really enjoy being here,” Brown said. “I know that time will tell and things will get taken care of with time, and I just look forward to getting out there on the field this year.”

Brown said part of his reason for potential optimism for a long-term deal with KC after the season was his belief that he’d have a productive 2022. He said he hoped that, in the end, his play on the field would speak for itself.

In terms of motivation, though, Brown said he wants to succeed for more than simply his next paycheck.

“I always feel like I’ve got something to prove,” Brown said. “I was a third-round pick, I had the worst (NFL) combine in history. The list goes on and on.

“So the chip’s always been really big. What does this necessarily mean? I don’t know if it’s that much different from the past, you know what I mean? I always feel like I’ve got a lot to prove.”

Brown said he spoke with both Veach and Reid in the last two days. Both parties, he said, came to the understanding that the business side should remain just that.

Now, he says, everyone is moving forward.

“There’s no hard feelings, period, you know what I mean? Nothing like that,” Brown said. “I appreciate everyone in this building. They give me an opportunity to play football at the highest level and to be a left tackle. So I’ve got no animosity towards anyone in this building. It’s nothing like that.

“Like I said before, business is business. I’m here to win Super Bowls. That’s all I care about is winning football games.”

Participation report

Cornerback Rashad Fenton (shoulder), tackle Lucas Niang (knee) and offensive lineman Prince Tega Wanogho (leg) remained on the physically unable to perform list, while tight end Jody Fortson (quad) was out of practice too.

Rookie receiver Skyy Moore also left the field midway through practice after suffering a right leg injury during receiver vs. cornerback drills. The Chiefs later reported that Moore’s ailment was a hip injury.

Observations

• Rookie linebacker Leo Chenal, who was mixing in with the first-team defense, had one of the day’s biggest hits while taking down running back Ronald Jones for a loss.

• Receiver Mecole Hardman had a long run out of a Wildcat formation with Mahomes split out wide. While finishing the run, Hardman was greeted near the end zone by Mahomes, who ran with him downfield.

• Roderick Johnson, who had played left tackle with the first team for almost all snaps before Brown arrived at camp, moved to left tackle with the second team. He also took the remaining first-team snaps at the position after Brown left the field early while easing into training-camp workouts.

• Tight end Travis Kelce had a pair of touchdown catches from Mahomes in red-zone drills, while running back Jerick McKinnon had another.

• Jones was the second running back working with the 1s on Tuesday — behind Clyde Edwards-Helaire. This came after two days when Jones primarily worked with the 2s.

• Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling couldn’t connect with Mahomes on a pair of opportunities. Early in 11-on-11s, he stopped short when Mahomes threw the ball deep on an apparent miscommunication. Later, when Mahomes hit him down the sideline, Valdes-Scantling dropped a ball that hit his hands.

• Safety Juan Thornhill had a pass breakup during red-zone drills against receiver Corey Coleman.