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KC Chiefs: Safety Tyvon Branch Signs One-Year Deal

By John Viril

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The KC Chiefs signed former Oakland Raider safety Tyvon Branch to a one-year, $2 million deal as NFL free-agency opened Tuesday, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport.

The deal can be worth up to $4 million if the 28-year-old Branch hits all of the incentives. The move makes clear that free-agent cornerback/safety Ron Parker will not return to the Kansas City Chiefs.

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Tyvon Branch came into the NFL as a fourth-round pick from Connecticut by the Oakland Raiders in the 2008 NFL Draft. He earned a starting job his second season in 2009, which he held through the 2012 season. However, injuries limited him to five starts the last two years.

Branch ended the 2014 season on injured reserve, after fracturing his foot week three against the Miami Dolphins in London.

Branch’s one-year deal is a clear attempt at re-establishing his market value for free-agency next season.

For his career, Tyvon Branch has 355 solo tackles with 107 assists, 4 interceptions, and 3 forced fumbles. Branch is at his best as an in-the-box safety and in man-to-man defense against tight-ends. When healthy, he’s a clear fit for KC Chiefs defensive coordinator Bob Sutton’s high pressure defense in Kansas City.

In 2012, Pro Football Focus writer Sam Monson called Tyvon Branch “Oakland’s Secret Superstar”, writing:

"Tyvon Branch has been a jack-of-all-trades for Oakland, and has emerged as a force against the run, as well as being one of a very few number of defenders that can hope to match up against some of the freakish athletes that NFL offenses are deploying from the tight end position these days."

Oakland also matched Branch up against slot receivers in sub-packages, but he struggled in that role. He also does not play well in the deep zone. Where Branch really shines is when he’s matched up against tight-ends. In that 2012 article, Monson wrote:

"Where Branch does excel in coverage is when matched up man-to-man, against tight ends in particular … a trait most coaches would kill for, given the rise of freakish tight ends like Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham, and Antonio Gates. His ability to man up with these weapons is a skill few players in the NFL have. Rob Gronkowski set single season NFL records in 2011 for touchdowns and yardage for a tight end, and outside of the Raiders game he averaged 6 receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown. On four targets into Branch’s coverage in their Week 4 game, Gronkowski came away with just a single catch for 15 yards, while Branch notched himself a ‘pass defensed’ on one of the incompletions.In two games against the Chargers, Antonio Gates didn’t have a catch to his name when covered by Branch, and he also blanked Dustin Keller, allowed Owen Daniels just a single catch for nine yards, and held Kyle Rudolph to a lone catch for negative yardage in their encounters last season."

Monson really loved Tyvon Branch in 2012. He also wrote an entire article detailing how Branch shut down Rob Gronkowski in 2011 when the Raiders used him in exclusive man coverage on the superstar tight end.

Not only does Branch’s arrival suggest that Ron Parker will not return to Kansas City, it also indicates that the KC Chiefs do not believe that Eric Berry will play in 2015 after undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma this winter.

In any case, the Chiefs defense can really use Branch’s run-stopping, and his ability to shut down tight-ends.

Next: Ten Free Agents The KC Chiefs Should Avoid

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