FRIDAY, 12:34pm: We’re at least an hour away from a resolution, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) hears.
10:54am: The two sides are “closing in” on a deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. In addition to the previously reported terms, Miller is set to receive $70MM fully guaranteed by March of 2018.
9:44am: Right now, it’s about a “98% certainty” that Miller will sign the six-year, $114.5MM offer with $70MM guaranteed today, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets.
THURSDAY, 11:02pm: The Broncos and franchise player Von Miller appear to inching closer to an agreement, and the two sides are fully expected to finalize a deal on Friday, according to Mike Klis of 9NEWS, who adds that the club has likely extended its final proposal. Denver is now offering Miller $70MM in guaranteed money, and there is optimism emerging from both camps as talks head in the “right direction,” per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links).
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Miller and Denver had already reportedly agreed to the overarching framework of an extension, and had informally worked out six-year, $114.5MM contract that would make Miller the league’s highest-paid defensive player on an annual basis. But the hangup in negotiations has always been guarantee structure and triggers (ie. when the guarantees would kick in), as Miller wants to eclipse the roughly ~$60MM guaranteed to defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.
The $70MM guaranteed figure refers to “essential guarantees,” according to Klis, and there’s still some confusion as to what that term means. It could plausibly refer to fully guaranteed cash, and if so, Miller would have secured the largest full guarantee in NFL history. But more likely, given Klis’ wording, the $70MM total is in reference to either injury guarantees or “effective” guarantees, the latter being money that it would be nearly impossible for Miller not to earn. Either way, the majority of Miller’s guarantee will be paid out in the first two years of the contract, report Adam Schefter and Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com.
The Broncos and general manager John Elway submitted a new offer to Miller and his camp over the weekend, and the two sides have apparently been discussing the offer since. Per the ESPN scribes, Denver and Miller’s team did not have “substantive talks” on Thursday, but are expected to reconvene on Friday to further hammer out the deal.
Like all franchise-tagged players, Miller has until 3pm Friday to reach an extension with his club or else will be forced to play out the 2016 season under the franchise tender. However, Miller has been adamant that he will sit out the year instead of playing under the tag, which would fully guarantee him ~$14MM.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.