Fans of the Green Bay Packers entered this offseason full of hope for the future after seeing QB Jordan Love look like a top quarterback in the NFC. Fans also expected that Jordan Love would get Patrick Mahomes level money (at least in terms of annual salary, which for the 3-time Super Bowl champion is $45 million). A wrench may have just been thrown into the gears, however.
Jared Goff’s Huge Contract Extension
The Detroit Lions recently signed quarterback Jared Goff to a massive new extension that made him the second highest paid QB in the NFL by average salary. His four year extension is worth up to $212 million, meaning he is making $53 million per year, second only to Bengals QB Joe Burrow who’s annual salary is $55 million. There’s little doubt that Jordan Love’s camp believes he is worth more than Goff, meaning negotiations on their side will likely start at Burrow’s number.
Will Jordan Love Become the League’s Highest Paid Player?
There’s little doubt that in terms of average salary Love could end up at $55 million per year. It’s all honestly 50/50 though. Perhaps Love’s contract ends up slightly lower in total value and slightly higher in guarantees than Goff’s. This does seem incredibly unlikely though, due to the Packers having never favored fully-guaranteed (or even close to fully-guaranteed) contracts.
There’s also the possibility that Jordan Love accepts a slightly more team-friendly contract that allows room to build for the future, although no one should expect this from someone who has had such a tumultuous career being viewed as a terrible draft pick that had no business replacing Aaron Rodgers. As a Packers fan, I want what’s best for the team, but I also want Love to get what he deserves. In my opinion, the ideal scenario is that the Packers sign him to a longer term contract, say six years, with an average salary closer to $50 million. This would ensure that he gets paid like an upper-echelon QB while also having quite a bit of job security going forward.
Ultimately, we know two things are almost certain, the Packers will be paying Jordan Love an average salary that is north of what Patrick Mahomes is currently making, and the deal will get done sooner rather than later.
In other news, we can at least stay tuned for the NFL’s schedule release, which will go live later today!
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Zack is a college student and cheesehead from California. When he’s not in class or writing, you can find him talking about the Packers on Twitter at @Zack_Upchurch.
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