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Marcel Louis-JacquesESPN
Buffalo Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins has agreed to a four-year extension through the 2024 season, the team announced Thursday.
The contract is for $ 60 million and includes guaranteed $ 34 million, sources told Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Dawkins, who entered into his rookie contract last year, has been a mainstay at left tackle since he was selected in the second round of the 2017 draft. He was not upset about his longing to stay in Buffalo.
“My top priority is to get better, and I know if I keep growing and learning and getting better, all the chips will eventually fall,” Dawkins told ESPN in March. “As far as a new contract is concerned, I’m not worried about that. What it assumes will happen.
“I’m trying to be in Buffalo forever, so I just have to do my part, and when the time comes, I’ll be happy to draw on that dotted line.”
Dawkins has started the past three seasons with 43 games and was a team captain in 2019, contributing as much to the team’s culture as he has to the offensive line. He is the first player from the 2017 draft class – the team’s first team under coach Sean McDermott – to receive a contract extension.
Not only is Dawkins a valuable possession that protects the blind side of third-year Josh Allen, but he is also a threat as a receiver. He has recorded a receiving touchdown in each of the past two seasons, and is bound for the sixth most by an offensive lineman since 1970.
With this expansion, Dawkins will take over Arizona’s DJ Humphries as the NFL’s fifth-highest paid left tackle.
Dawkins, 26, had a declining year in 2018 before returning as one of the Bills’ best players in 2019. His captaincy was a reflection of his self-realization over the entire season.
“At one point, it really all just clicked. I got a deeper understanding of the game of football, the role I had to play and the way I had to play it,” Dawkins said. “So many people look to footballers, and to the people who look at me, I want to give them the best example of a complete athlete I can possibly give.
“It’s OK to be the glue and the bridge to make people smile and keep the energy in the down days as much as the good days.”
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