Chiefs place franchise tag on Eric Berry

The Kansas City Chiefs have officially placed the franchise tag on safety Eric Berry, the team announced.

Keeping Berry off the free-agent market was easily the Chiefs' top priority heading into the offseason. With an agreement for a long-term deal still yet to take shape, reports surfaced Tuesday afternoon that the team was indeed planning to use the franchise designation.

"Our goal is to keep Eric in Kansas City for the foreseeable future," general manager John Dorsey said in a press release. "He's a special player that means a lot to our organization, the city, and has been a critical piece in building our foundation. With today being the deadline to use the franchise tag, we felt it was in the best interest of the club to place the tag on Eric."

The one-year tender, if applied as a non-exclusive tag, would tentatively have Berry in line to play the 2016 campaign under a $10.806-million salary.

He'd still have the freedom to negotiate with other teams when free agency opens, but the Chiefs would maintain the right to either match an offer sheet or receive two first-round picks as compensation.

Berry is coming off an incredible 2015 season, where he made his return to the field after beating cancer and immediately re-emerged as one of the NFL's most productive defensive backs.

The 27-year-old recorded 61 tackles, two interceptions, and 10 passes defensed across 16 regular-season appearances, earning the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year award, First-Team All-Pro honors, and his fourth career Pro Bowl appearance.