Chiefs Agree to ‘Injury Settlement’ With Promising Rookie

For undrafted linebacker Isaiah Moore, this summer has been a rollercoaster of a learning experience. Prior to Kansas City Chiefs training camp, the NC State product was first mentioned as a player to watch. KSHB41 media member Nick Jacobs even claimed that the priority UDFA would make the Week 1 squad following a strong start in July.

Then, out of nowhere, Moore sustained an injury, which resulted in his being placed on injured reserve and another player taking his position on the 90-man roster. Normally, this would be the end of a player’s season unless the two sides are able to reach a resolution.

Although we are unaware of Moore’s settlement’s specifics, we can describe how this scenario usually plays out. Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap once performed a fantastic job outlining injury settlements for fans.

“Contrary to what some believe a settlement is not a negotiation of price,” Fitzgerald began. “It’s really a negotiation of weeks. When a minor injury occurs, a determination is made for weeks that the player will miss due to injury. The options would be to hold the player until he is healthy enough to be released or to have the two sides agree right away as to the amount of weeks that the injury should keep the player sidelined.”

“Once the weeks are agreed upon the team simply agrees to pay the player as if he was on the roster for those weeks,” he continued. “Teams and players have a 5-day window to agree to this settlement. Once the settlement occurs the player is again released from the team (in most cases exposed to waivers), except in this situation the player can return to the team, with a bit of a catch. The player is not allowed to return to the team until the length of the settlement passes plus another 6 weeks.”

So, let’s say the Chiefs agreed to pay Moore for two regular season weeks, hypothetically. He would then be “free to sign with any team in the NFL at that point and agrees to waive all rights to compensation from the team in the event the injury turns out to be more serious than expected” — per Fitzgerald.

Moore would not be permitted to sign with Kansas City again until Week 9, or six weeks following the conclusion of the settlement. Again, this is simply a hypothetical situation. How many weeks Moore and the Chiefs decided upon is unknown.

The settlement choice, according to Fitzgerald, was “financial for both sides.” They frequently happen to veterans and prospects with short-term contracts when an injury is severe enough to keep the player out permanently but not necessarily for the entire season. It is uncertain whether Moore will eventually come back to KC.