ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- Orlando Brown failed to reach an agreement with the Kansas City Chiefs on a long-term contract but said after his first training camp practice on Tuesday that he still would like to remain with Kansas City for the rest of his career.
"I want to be here,'' said Brown, the Chiefs' left tackle and franchise player. "I want to finish my career here in Kansas City. I'm sure questions are out there, but to me, with the contract situation, it just wasn't enough guarantees.
"I love ball. I love blocking for Pat Mahomes. I love putting the Chiefs' logo on my helmet. I really enjoy being here.''
After missing the first week of training camp, Brown reported to Missouri Western State University and signed his one-year contract worth almost $16.7 million. He practiced for the first time on Tuesday.
The Chiefs practiced in full pads for the first time on Monday, an event that Brown said triggered his arrival.
"I missed a lot of ball up until this point, and I missed the locker room,'' Brown said. "I missed the coaches, you know, everyone here in the building. I know how important this five-day stretch is to coach [Andy] Reid and everybody here at K.C. I just didn't feel right sitting at home, missing out on this. This is something that I want to be a part of. You know, I was brought here to help with Super Bowls, and this week is very important to our progression.''
The Chiefs and Brown previously discussed a long-term contract, with the team offering six years and $139 million. Brown declined, and the July 15 deadline for a long-term agreement between the sides passed.
At that point, Brown's only option to play for the Chiefs this season was the one-year contract he signed this week.
Brown sat out all of offseason practice. While away from the Chiefs, he said he played tennis twice each week and spent a lot of time swimming.
"It's always hard,'' Brown said of being away from the Chiefs. "I pride myself on being a leader. I pride myself on being someone that wants to be here for his teammates, showing up every day, bringing the most positive energy that I can bring to the locker room and on the field. 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.''