TO UPDATE: Here’s an early look at Patrick Mahomes’ contract numbers, and what they mean (sort of) …
(Except not really, because NFL contracts are not fully guaranteed. And Major League Baseball offers are. So we don’t know the actual numbers in the Mahomes deal yet.)
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Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is now a very wealthy man.
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It is unclear how much money, and fully guaranteed money, by signing, Mahomes will get from this contract. But it will be a lot.
And Mahomes could also make history in another way:
When considering what kind of money Mahomes is likely to get, it’s worth looking at what other quarterbacks have made in the past few years. (Because Mahomes will get over that.)
It’s also worth remembering that Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who has been labeled a franchise, is still awaiting his new contract this summer. The Cowboys have until next Wednesday to reach a deal with Prescott.
Will one be made? Prescott won’t get as much money as Mahomes, but the deal with Mahomes will at least establish some kind of measure for Prescott’s contract.
While we wait for Mahomes’ monetary figures, here is a look at three quarterback contracts that were made last year, for the sake of comparison (all figures via Spotrac.com):
• Carson Wentz, Eagles: Four years, $ 128 million, $ 32 million per year, $ 66.47 million guaranteed upon signing, $ 107.97 million of total guarantee
• Jared Goff, Rams: Four years, $ 134 million, $ 33.5 million per year, $ 57,042 million guaranteed upon signing, $ 110,042 million of total guarantee
• Russell Wilson, Seahawks: Four years, $ 140 million, $ 35 million per year, $ 70 million guaranteed by signing, $ 107 million total guarantee
Wilson has the quarterback’s current benchmark for the annual average value, with the Steelers’ second Ben Roethlisberger ($ 34 million). Wilson is third in guaranteed money signing, behind Matt Ryan of the Falcons ($ 94.5 million) and Aaron Rodgers of the Packers ($ 79.2 million).
Roethlisberger signed his contract in 2019 (a two-year extension). Ryan and Rodgers signed their agreements in 2018.
Now Mahomes has a good opportunity to set entirely new benchmarks, in multiple ways.
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