For the past several weeks, NFL Nationals writers have been busy speculating that the NFL’s two-times (and power) MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes will soon renegotiate his contract with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Professional Football Talk Mike Florio is among those leading this conversation. On May 2, Florio The way Mahomes undercharges is “almost criminal”, he said. A week later, it is He claimed Mahomes’ new contract is imminent.
Predict that, before the season begins, Mahomes will once again be the highest-paid player in league history.
Florio said Kansas City general manager Brett Fitch “undertook” to address Mahomes’ contract after other quarterback contracts were completed.
While Veach didn’t go into any detail, here’s what to reasonably expect, based on our conversations with people familiar with the dynamics of the situation.
But Florio is not the only one. write to Team 33 May 9, previously Minnesota Vikings General Motors Jeff Diamond He said this would happen because Mahomes was no longer the highest paid player in the league.
Mahomes has already restructured to relieve the chiefs from their salary cap, but the first real renegotiations are likely to take place in the next few months. That’s because Mahomes’ average $45 million a year in new money—actually $40 million a year when factoring in the two years he stayed in his rookie contract—now ranks seventh among NFL players. He probably has the ninth-highest average after Joe Borough and Justin Herbert extend before the 2023 season.
Wednesday, Hey ho! sports’ Charles Robinson He added another name to that listsaying that soon, Mahomes will be far behind.
That’s six quarterbacks who have surpassed Mahomes in average annual salary and guaranteed money overall. Soon enough (with the exception of Mahomes’ renegotiation), Burrow would join this list Los Angeles Chargers” Justin Herbert And Jacksonville Jaguars” Trevor Lawrence. By the start of the 2024 season, Mahomes may be the 10th highest paid player in the league.
All of these esteemed writers may be absolutely right. By week one, Mahomes could once again become the highest paid player in the league.
But I don’t think so. Here’s why:
It’s very soon
Mahomes signed a 10-year contract extension on July 6, 2020 — not earlier than three years later — when he still had two full years left on his rookie contract. This means that he and the bosses are now One year In the 2020 contract for a period of 10 years.
When the contract was signed, everyone knew it would be renegotiated before it expired in 2031. At the time, the 2025 season — when the deal’s dead money drops to zero — was identified as the earliest possible renegotiation date. But right now, the deal contains $134 million in dead money. In any renegotiation, this money must be dealt with against the maximum.
The deal Veach struck with Mahomes’ agents Lee Steinberg and Chris Cabot was unprecedented. It is unlikely that this carefully orchestrated convention could be torn apart on a whim.
Mahomes – and the chiefs – knew this was going to happen
In his column on Wednesday, Robinson not only acknowledged that the next window for negotiation was years away, but he also was aware that Mahomes no To be the highest paid quarterback in the league for a very long time.
It was a deal everyone knew failed to maximize Mahomes’ value by pushing his next free agency window into his mid-30s, and it ensured that his salary would quickly be eclipsed by a slew of lesser quarterbacks.
Franklin admitted the same.
When I was general manager, I was never a fan of long-term contracts beyond four or five years. I knew that the deals would soon be below market value and would create potentially severe situations that would have to be dealt with through contract extensions or deals.
And then there are Mahomes Himself said about it. Here’s an exchange from a press conference last July:
Reporter: “When you signed your deal a few years ago, I think you probably expected it to be crossed a few times. What do you think of that over the past two years?”
Mahomes: “Yeah, I mean, it’s great not just for the quarterback market but for the player market in general. You want the salary cap to keep going up; you want the players to keep getting more and more money. When I signed my deal, I knew I’d be ready for life.” regardless of the type of market [did]. But you just keep playing. I mean, money is one thing, but when you get Super Bowl rings at the end of your career, I think that’s going to be the thing you look back on. I think I’ve made enough money on the football field – and it’s also obviously not going to matter at the end of the day.”
Does this really sound like someone unaware that their contract is going to be crossed again and again – and when that happens, will they insist on a new one?
Mahomes is happy with his deal
Let’s be honest: contracts are never renegotiated for more money because that’s how it goes a team Wants. It happens because that is what happens player Wants.
Is there any evidence that Mahomes truly He thinks the average annual value (AAV) of his contract is a measure of it actual value? Is there any evidence Mahomes will want a new deal before it makes sense for him and his team? To be sure, there are quarterbacks who get paid the most in the AAV. There are also back players who guarantee more money – but only within traditional contract structures.
But there is Still There are no other quarterbacks whose teams have committed to paying them $500 million — and while it’s not as structured as Deshaun Watson’s $230 million collateral, Mahomes’ $477 million is default content.
Until then, the deal was structured so that the Chiefs could continue to surround their quarterbacks with quality players—and compete for more championships. Everyone agrees that this is the case.
bottom line
Florio and Franklin (and others, incl Arrowhead pride Editor-in-Chief Pete Sweeney) all believe Mahomes’ deal will be renegotiated soon. They could easily be right. There is decades of evidence indicating that NFL players will always do whatever it takes to be considered the highest paid player – even if the title is fictitious or short-lived.
However, I also believe that if Mahomes has taught us anything, it’s that he can shatter any record or trend he chooses to demolish.
Just four months ago everyone believed that no quarterback who won the league passing title could also win a Super Bowl — and that no team paying more than 13.1% of their maximum salary to a quarterback could win the championship. But these records were both broken.
I think by the standards normally used, Mahomes would do no To be the highest paid player in the league this season. He will be fine with that.