The tight end mark has been officially reset.
George Kittle (49ers) and Travis Kelce (Chiefs) signed massive new expansions on Thursday that will make them the highest paid players in their position by a wide margin.
Kittle signed a five-year $ 75 million extension, while Kelce put pen to paper on a four-year deal, $ 57 million.
Compensation Game: Chiefs give Pro Bowl TE Travis Kelce a four-year, $ 57 million extension, which binds him to Kansas City over the next six years.
– Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 13, 2020
Suddenly, Jimmy Graham’s two-year deal, $ 16 million, doesn’t seem so bad. Then again, you get what you pay for, right?
Graham joins the Bears after a 2019 season at Green Bay that totaled 38 catches for 447 yards and three touchdowns in total. Compare those numbers with Kelce, who had 97 catches for 1,229 yards and five scores in 2019, and Kittle, who had 85 catches for 1,053 yards and five touchdowns, and it’s easy to see why she’s almost annual Graham’s average salary nearly doubled.
With an average of $ 15 million a year, George Kittle is now the highest paid TE in the NFL, by a long shot. For the Kittle deal, Hunter Henry held that title with a $ 10,607M deal on his franchise tag.
– Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 13, 2020
Does Graham have enough left in the tank to justify his $ 8 million a year salary? He deserves more than players like Jared Cook (Saints) and Darren Waller (Raiders), who each flew more playmaking in 2019 than Graham in 2019.
The good news for the Bears is that they will be out of the tight end market for a while, assuming second-round pick Cole Kmet lives up to his scout report. He will be a cheap starter on a rookie contract for the next four seasons.
Hopefully we will talk about Kmet as one of the highest paid players in the position when his second deal ran. Until then, it’s Kittle and Kelce who rule the tight end universe.
