Tua Tagovailoa‘s Dolphins extension leaves two NFC quarterbacks in talks with their respective teams. Jordan Love and Dak Prescott remain in contract years, and while the Packers passer might be closer to the goal line than the longtime Cowboys starter, work remains.
The Dolphins and Tagovailoa needed to address the QB’s per-year number, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, whereas the Packers and Love are attempting to agree on contract structure. Packer contract structures come up frequently, as the organization does not typically include guarantees past the first year. That said, the team has bent for quarterbacks in the past.
Timing of guarantee vesting dates, a matter Patrick Mahomes‘ mega-extension influenced, and three-year payouts are among the primary issues pertaining to structure. Bonus payments represent another. The sides being in agreement on AAV and term length, however, would cross the key items off the list as negotiations wind down. As of now, however, Love remains tied to the half-measure extension (two years, $13.5MM) he signed in lieu of a fifth-year option payment in 2023.
Trevor Lawrence‘s Jaguars extension included three fully guaranteed base salaries and a partial guarantee into Year 4, with the rest of Lawrence’s 2027 money becoming guaranteed a year early. Preferring larger bonuses as opposed to fully guaranteeing salaries that far into the future, the Packers organized a complex deal with Aaron Rodgers in 2022. The team traded that contract to the Jets, restructuring it on the way out. Rodgers’ last traditional extension, which came in summer 2018, included what was then the largest signing bonus in NFL history ($57.5MM).
Rodgers’ pacts in 2013 and 2018 showed the Packers are not afraid of record-setting contracts, as the four-time MVP’s ’18 extension (worth $33.5MM per year, illustrating where the QB market has gone since) included $103MM over the first three years and $80MM by March of 2019.
Lawrence received $200MM guaranteed in total (on a five-year deal), while Tagovailoa just secured $167.5MM guaranteed. This gives Love some targets, though his one season as a starter gives the Packers relatively new territory to cover. The team extended Rodgers midway through his first starter season (2008), but it did not require a top-market deal to do so. Love’s contract will assuredly come in beyond $50MM per year, with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter mentioning early this summer Lawrence’s $55MM AAV would likely be the floor.
Love is not practicing without a deal, and while the sides may indeed be close, training camp workouts going on while a healthy starting QB watches represents a rarity. While Love and Packers were hoping to complete this extension before training camp, the sides missed that soft deadline and continue to work on this long-sought-after agreement.
Maybe he wants a Tax break or to be paid as an LLC?
He probably wants a contract clause that prevents the Packers from trading him to the Bears…lol.
Well of the last 2, One’s a thief-pervert and ones a weirdo. Just proves the ability to throw a football isn’t EVERYTHING. But it is one thing the Bears QB’s have been lacking. Maybe 3rd times a charm.