The loudest buzz around the US sports world today comes from the announcement around mid-day yesterday of a new contract extension for the Eagles’ QB, Jalen Hurts. For the moment he is the highest plaid player in the NFL with an average annual salary of $51M assuming it all plays out to the end. That is not bad at all for a second round pick – – #53 overall – – in a draft class that provided the NFL with some significant QB talent. There were four QBs taken before Hurts was selected in that draft:
- Joe Burrow – – Overall #1
- Tua Tagovailoa – – Overall #5
- Justin Herbert – – Overall #6
- Jordan Love – – Overall #26
Because Hurts was a second round pick, the Eagles did not have a fifth-year option they could exercise in his contract; that art form goes to players taken in the first round. So, this was going to be Hurts’ “walk year,” but the Eagles decided to push that situation back 5 years.
Here are a few particulars in the Jalen Hurts deal:
- Guaranteed money at Signing = $110M
- Total guarantees that are relatively easy to achieve = $179M
- Total contract value = $255M over 5 years
- No-trade clause
I think Eagles/Hurts deal benefits those four QBs taken in the first round of the 2020 draft. Surely, Burrow and Herbert will use the deal as a benchmark in their opening set of contract demands.
- Joe Burrow should get a deal comparable to the one Hurts just signed. His situation is complicated to some degree by the fact that the Bengals will also need to find cap room for JaMarr Chase on the heels of Burrow’s deal.
- Tua Tagovailoa’s injury history makes his situation “dicey”. In three seasons, Tua has missed 14 games – – but last year playing in only 13 games got him named as an All-Pro.
- Justin Herbert – – and his Chargers’ teammates – – have not had nearly the same level of success as either Joe Burrow or Jalen Hurts. But it would be unfair to pin all the blame for that on Herbert; he is the first QB ever to start his NFL career with three consecutive seasons with 4,000 or more yards passing. [Aside: In 2021, his passing total was more than 5,000 yards.]
- Jordan Love is a pure mystery. The Packers have a year to decide if they want to invest big money over the long term with Love. To a certain degree, he is facing a “show-me year.”
At the same time, I think this deal is not good for Lamar Jackson. Let me start with an obvious disclaimer. I have no inside information about the negotiations between Jackson and the Ravens; I feel like Will Rogers here; all I know is just what I read in the papers – – or on the Internet. Reports have said that Jackson wants at least what the Browns gave Deshaun Watson – – 5 years and $230M fully guaranteed.
Russell Wilson’s mega deal with the Broncos was signed after the Watson deal and was not fully guaranteed; neither was Kyler Murray’s extension with the Cards. Now Jalen Hurts has a contract signed after the Watson deal and it only guarantees 70% of the total possible value for the contract. Jackson was previously able to point to the Watson deal and tell the Ravens that he has been a more productive QB than Watson has been, so he deserves similar terms. Jackson cannot make a similar claim about superior productivity when it comes to either Wilson or Hurts. So, if reports are correct that his demand for a fully guaranteed contract has been a sticking point, his position today is less tenable than it was 48 hours ago.
Adam Schefter previously reported that the Ravens had offered Jackson the following terms and Jackson turned them down. Assume for a minute that Schefter’s report is perfectly accurate and compare a couple of the reported terms to the deal Hurts just signed:
- Total Value for Jackson = $250M For Hurts = $255M
- Guarantee at signing for Jackson = $133M For Hurts = $110M
- Total Guarantee over contract for Jackson = $200M For Hurts = $179M
Jackson has refused to sign the franchise tag the Ravens used on him and has requested a trade from the Ravens. The team has no obligation to honor such a request; but even if it did, a trade would be difficult to effect. The non-exclusive franchise tag that exists on Jackson means that he can sign with any other team – – and then the Ravens have a couple of days to decide between one of two options:
- Then can accept the terms of the contract offered by the other team and keep Lamar Jackson as their QB – – or – –
- They can say “Vaya con Dios” to Lamar Jackson and receive two first-round draft picks from the team that signed him.
That means any team dealing with the Ravens to acquire Jackson would have to start the bidding at two first round picks; and at the same time, the team seeking to trade for Jackson would have to be willing to offer him contract terms to his liking. Any team willing to trade for Jackson should already have made him the kind of contract offer he wants if they thought he was worth that plus two first round picks. Jackson has been free to negotiate with other teams for weeks now and there have been no reports of “action”.
Finally, since I mentioned Will Rogers above, let me close with two of his great observations:
“Why don’t they pass a Constitutional amendment prohibiting anybody from learning anything? If it works as well as Prohibition did, in five years Americans would be the smartest race of people on earth,”
And …
“The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn’t get worse every time Congress meets.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………