Kansas City Chiefs sign former Oakland Raiders’ cornerback, Stanford Routt – NFL News
Former Oakland Raiders’ cornerback, Stanford Routt, who recently became a free agent after being surprisingly released by the team, has signed a three-year contract with Kansas City Chiefs.
Routt was also in contact with Cincinnati Bengals, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys, Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans, but Chiefs became his final choice.
According to different unconfirmed reports, the contract is worth $19.6 million including a $4 million signing bonus, which he will get in March. Some reports have quoted different figures as well.
The Raiders are also bound to pay Routt $5 million, which was guaranteed in his restructured $54.5 million, five-year contract with the franchise.
Chiefs’ general manager, Scott Pioli, and head coach, Romeo Crennel, are pleased to have Routt in the team.
Rout, 28, started 15 games while playing 16 in the last National Football League (NFL) regular season and posted 49 tackles while recording four interceptions.
While appreciating Routt’s talent, Pioli said that he was excited to have the player in his team. He said:
“As we have said in the past, we are always looking to add competition at every position year-round. Stanford’s experience and level of play will make him a solid addition to our defence.”
Routt has made transition from a team in the American Football Conference (AFC) West division to a team in the same division.
Crennel thinks that this will be helpful for Routt to get adjusted with the Chiefs.
The head coach said of the new acquisition:
“He’s a talented player that has spent seven seasons in the AFC West, so he is familiar with us and our division opponents.”
Routt himself is an admirer of Crennel. After joining hands with the Chiefs, he said that with the level of expertise in the coaching staff, Chiefs have a chance of making a strong impact next year.
He said:
"I've always had a lot of respect for Romeo Crennel with his defensive expertise, so the sky is the limit for us. When you look at that, and combine it with the pieces they have on offense, I don't see why we can't win,"
Routt’s addition in the squad will certainly strengthen Chiefs’ defensive line, but the team should also look for investing heavily in acquiring the players who could provide support to the seemingly feeble offensive unit.
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