John Tait (American football)

John Bernard Tait (born January 26, 1975) is a former American football offensive lineman, who played for both the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He was originally selected with the 14th overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs out of Brigham Young University and played for the Chiefs for five years.

Early years
He is a 1993 graduate of McClintock High School in Tempe, Arizona.

At Brigham Young University, Tait started 38 games during his three-year college career. Tait was an All-America pick his final season and earned first-team All-WAC honors as a sophomore and a junior. Eligible for a fifth year of college action after redshirting as a true freshman in 1993, Tait declared for the draft. He served as the captain for the BYU offense and started all 13 games at left tackle as a junior. He was a First-team All-WAC choice earned first-team All-America honors from Football News (1998) and named National Offensive Lineman-of-the-Year by The Sports Network and received a freshman All-America nod from The Sporting News.

Professional career
Regarded as the No. 1 offensive tackle available in the 1999 NFL Draft, Tait was selected 14th overall by the Chiefs. Sports Illustrated described him as "a pure left tackle" with "no real physical weaknesses". He was the highest selected BYU Cougar since Shawn Knight in 1987.

As a rookie in Kansas City, Tait held out during the negotiation of his first contract. There was a meeting between Tait, his two agents and Chiefs General Manager Carl Peterson, wherein Tait and his agents left. Shortly afterward Tait signed an offer sheet for 5 years.

At the end of Tait's contract with the Chiefs, the team put a transition tag on him. Tait later signed with the Bears, who gave him a six-year, $34 million offer sheet the Chiefs failed to match.

The February 14, 2009 edition of the Chicago Tribune reported that league sources expected Tait to retire and forego his $4.8 million paycheck for the 2009 season; his ankle injuries were believed to be the impetus for retirement. On February 21, 2009, ChicagoBears.com confirmed Tait's intention to retire.