Dontari Poe could wind up as one of most overpaid free agents
Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Dontari Poe is set to hit the free agent market in just over a month. He could wind up as one of the most overpaid…
As we gear up for another NFL offseason, we’re looking forward to a very good-looking free agent class of 2017 that includes Kansas City Chiefs nose tackle Dontari Poe. Poe, who was a first round pick five years ago already, could wind up being one of the most over-valued players on the open market.
Despite his exciting size and athleticism for a big man, Poe has under-performed the last two seasons with the Chiefs, racking up just 2.5 sacks from 2015-2016 after a six-sack season in 2014. The downward trajectory of Poe’s play is of particular interest because early in his career with Kansas City, he was looking like one of the best up-and-coming nose tackles in the game.
As he prepares to hit the open market, the Chiefs really can’t entertain the idea of keeping him if they also want to keep safety Eric Berry, who is unquestionably the priority in this situation. With so many teams having a ton of available cap space, Poe could wind up being one of the league’s most over-priced free agent pickups based on recent performance.
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He graded out a 70.5 by Pro Football Focus this past year, a pedestrian rating just above players like Andre Branch. It was a disappointing individual season for Poe, though the Chiefs enjoyed a ton of success as a unit defensively. The good news for Poe is, he’s still just 26 years old and has a lot of football ahead of him. He’s physically gifted and has shown a capability of being dominant in this league.
His market value right now, per Spotrac, is at $13 million annually. That’s an insane number for someone who hasn’t played elite football of late, but it makes sense given Poe’s ability to dominate games when he’s ‘on’.
Whatever team takes a shot on Poe is going to be banking on the fact that a big contract is going to motivate him to become the player he was blossoming into in 2013-14. If you’re a cap rich team, it’s not a terrible gamble but it’s going to be a lot of money to risk and a huge vote of confidence that Poe can be a foundation piece of a defense.
Spotrac projects Poe to eventually reach a contract of roughly five years, $80 million based on age and past production. If that’s the case, he’d better be doing more than throwing a gadget touchdown pass.
