Kansas City, Mo. ? Quarterback Damon Huard has agreed to a three-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs. Chiefs general manager Carl Peterson announced the deal Tuesday.

The deal will pay Huard $7.5 million, including a signing bonus of $2.75 million and base salaries of $1 million in 2007, $1.75 million in 2008 and $2 million in 2009.

Huard, 34, was paid $710,000 last season. He would have become an unrestricted free agent Friday.

The journeyman proved to be an indispensable backup last season when starter Trent Green sustained a severe concussion in the season opener against Cincinnati. After spending most of his career as a second- or third-stringer, Huard was thrust into the starting lineup for eight games and led the Chiefs into the playoff hunt.

He went 5-3 as a starter, completing 148 of 244 passes for 1,878 yards with 11 touchdowns and one interception. His 98.0 passer rating was second only to Peyton Manning.

“Damon had an excellent year in 2006 and contributed directly to getting our team to the playoffs,” Peterson said in a release. “Damon is an excellent veteran player and an outstanding person. We’re delighted to have him under contract.”

Coach Herm Edwards benched Huard after Green was cleared to play. After his return, the two-time Pro Bowler never looked like the player who had made 80 straight starts and thrown for more yards the previous five seasons than any quarterback except Manning.

With Green under center, the Chiefs struggled down the stretch. A series of improbable upsets on the final day of the regular season allowed Kansas City to slip into the playoffs, where Green threw for 107 yards and two interceptions in a 23-8 first-round loss at Indianapolis.

Huard’s signing calls into question Green’s future as the starting quarterback in Kansas City. He is signed through 2009 and is set to earn $7.2 million next season. Green will be 37 by the start of training camp.