KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Chiefs and Justin Houston agreed to a six-year, $101 million contract just hours before the Wednesday afternoon deadline for a long-term deal, the culmination of long negotiation that made the All-Pro the highest-paid linebacker in NFL history.

The contract includes $52.5 million guaranteed, said a person familiar with it who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because terms were not disclosed.

That makes Houston's contract the richest in franchise history, too. The only defensive player to sign a larger deal is defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who agreed to a six-year, $114 million pact with the Miami Dolphins earlier this year.

"In situations like this, you have to have a degree of patience," Chiefs general manager John Dorsey said. "What's good is it kicks off a very positive attitude for training camp."

The sides had been trying to work out a contract to keep Houston in Kansas City since last off-season, but had made little progress. The Chiefs were forced to put the franchise tag on him, which would have been a one-year deal worth about $13.1 million.

As days ticked by, it became increasingly likely that Houston would skip training camp in St. Joseph, Missouri. But negotiations picked up as the deadline approached and the Chiefs singled out Houston's agent, Joel Segal, for praise.

"You just have to be consistent day-in and day-out, and kind of peck away, and make sure communication is ongoing," Dorsey said. "I can't applaud his agent enough. I think that Joel did a great job as well in this thing."

Houston was coming off the final year of his rookie contract, a breakout season in which he broke Derrick Thomas's franchise record with 22 sacks. He had four alone in a dynamic season-ending performance against San Diego, leaving him a half-sack short of the NFL's single-season record set by Michael Strahan of the New York Giants in 2001.

Those gaudy totals sent Houston to his third consecutive Pro Bowl and earned him first-team All-Pro honours for the first time in his four-year career.

Sent his asking price for a new contract soaring, too.

Houston was considered one of the top linebackers in the draft coming out of Georgia, but a failed test for marijuana at the scouting combine caused his stock to slide. The Chiefs wound up taking him in the third round, in retrospect a massive bargain — or downright steal.

He has only made roughly $3 million over the course of his rookie contract. For that small price, Kansas City got 200 tackles, 48 1/2 sacks and five fumble recoveries.

Houston has also grown into one of the leaders in the locker room, helping keep things together when a rash of injuries struck last season. Despite losing linebacker Derrick Johnson and tackle Mike DeVito in the opener, the Chiefs still had one of the AFC's top defences.

Houston skipped the Chiefs' entire off-season program, including their mandatory minicamp, rather than signing his franchise tender. But all along, coach Andy Reid expressed optimism that the sides would reach an agreement before the start of the season.

Reid also wasn't concerned about the missed workouts.

"I think he's working out, absolutely," Reid said at the end of off-season work. "That's just him by nature, so he's not going to let things slide on his side."

Fellow linebacker Tamba Hali, who went through a similar negotiation with the Chiefs in 2011, said he had been in touch with Houston throughout the off-season.

"He's working his tail off," Hali said. "Like any player he wants to be here, but again, we know our league is a business and you have to allow that business to work itself out."

Dorsey declined to address the specific terms of the contract, though its long-term nature means the Chiefs should receive some salary cap relief on the front end. That could come in handy with several other key players entering the final year of their contracts.

"We've always said, if you can retain your own football players, great football players, that helps you sustain going forward," Dorsey said. "I feel that we have enough flexibility to where we'll be able to do more deals. That's what you do."