Elam surprised DENVER >> After buying a plot of land south of Denver last summer, Broncos kicker Jason Elam never went through with plans to build a home because of his uncertain future.
to get contract
The former UH kicker was sure
his career in Denver was overStar-Bulletin wire services
Now, he won't have to worry about that.
Elam had an appointment with a home builder yesterday afternoon, just hours after signing a five-year, $9 million deal that could allow him to finish his career in Denver. His $2.6 million signing bonus is one of the biggest ever for a kicker.
"I didn't want to build a house then have to move to who knows where," Elam said. "But now I can do that and know that I've got a little bit of stability here."
Elam, who kicked at Hawaii from 1989 to '92, was up for free agency after the 2001 season, but the Broncos designated him with their franchise player tag. He agreed to a one-year, $1.45 million contract at the beginning of training camp with hopes of landing a long-term deal, but negotiations during the season proved fruitless.
Elam said during the season that he didn't expect to be back with the Broncos and reiterated it after the season finale against Arizona in December.
"Obviously it's a little emotional, because this is probably it for me," Elam told the Rocky Mountain News just after the final game of the regular season.
The Broncos seemed uninterested in re-signing the best kicker in team history, particularly after he made just 26 of 36 field goals in 2002, which tied for the worst percentage of his career. And prior to Week 10 last season, the Broncos signed Micah Knorr to take over kickoff duties.
That changed when coach Mike Shanahan approached Elam in late December, starting a process that culminated with yesterday's deal.
Elam said a scarcity of free-agent kickers could have led to Denver's renewed interest, but he still wasn't sure why things changed so quickly.
"I'm kind of speechless in a lot of ways," said Elam, who was set to become a free agent on March 1. "I didn't think anything was going to get done for a long time, but they kept the line of communication open and things kind of heated up the last few weeks. I was kind of surprised."
The 32-year-old Elam has established himself as one of the league's most consistent kickers during his 10 seasons with the Broncos.
A three-time Pro Bowler, Elam hit a 63-yard field goal in 1998 to tie Tom Dempsey for the longest in NFL history and he has the highest career percentage for extra points at .995 (410-412).
He holds the league record for most consecutive PATs, at 371, and is one of 26 NFL players to reach 1,100 career points.
Elam has made 261 of 333 field-goal attempts, the most in the league since 1993, and has two Super Bowl rings.
"Jason has been a valuable member of this team with his consistent and clutch kicking," Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist said in a written statement. "We're very happy that he will continue to play a key role in our plans to put together a championship team.
"Jason's production speaks for itself, and we wanted to be able to fairly compensate him."