HEADLINES

Russell Wilson

Luck, Wilson On Track For $24MM+ Per Year?

June 5th, 2014 at 9:33am CST by Luke Adams

While Colin Kaepernick‘s new contract has the potential to be massive, its average of $21MM per year didn’t set a new standard. The high water mark for quarterbacks’ annual salaries still belongs to Aaron Rodgers and his $22MM per year figure. Nonetheless, it may just be a matter of time before a new wave of young signal-callers tops that amount. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter), word around the NFL suggests that when Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson sign extensions, their new deals will come in at around $24-25MM per year.

As Joe Flacco‘s long-term contract with the Ravens exhibited, Super Bowl victories typically give a notable bump to a quarterback’s value, so it’s no surprise that Wilson, coming off a championship, would be eyeing such a mega-deal. However, his regular-season numbers also stack up quite well against Luck’s — the Indianapolis QB has piled up more yardage, but in their two years in the league, Wilson has completed a higher percentage of passes (63.6% to 57.0%), tossed more TDs (52 to 46), and thrown fewer interceptions (19 to 27) than Luck.

That isn’t to say that Luck won’t also be deserving of a $24MM+ annual salary, particularly with the salary cap on the rise. The former first overall pick showed plenty of improvement in 2013 even after one of his top weapons (Reggie Wayne) went down with a season-ending injury, and more is expected of him on offense than of Wilson, who plays in a more run-heavy system in Seattle. Further growth is expected for Luck in 2014, and the Colts will do everything they can to lock up their franchise quarterback. Still, barring a drastic turn this season, Wilson may actually have a stronger case to become the highest-paid QB in football.

Cam Newton, Nick Foles, and Robert Griffin III are among the other talented young quarterbacks who also figure to engage their respective teams in talks on long-term extensions sometime within the next year or so.

Seahawks Notes: Tate, Bennett, Salary Cap

March 1st, 2014 at 6:24pm CST by Peter Sowards

As the Seahawks said goodbye to receiver Sidney Rice and defensive lineman Red Bryant, they said hello to approximately $12.8MM in savings, freeing the defending Super Bowl champions to be active participants in upcoming free agency.

Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times reached out to cap expert Jason Fitzgerald of OvertheCap.com, and Fitzgerald offered a plethora of knowledge, shining light on the possible plans of GM John Schneider in the coming months.

  • According to Fitzgerald, the team will have about $17.8MM in cap room. He predicts a safe spending level between $10-10.5MM after setting aside $1.5MM for rookie draft picks and a minimum $6MM cushion.
  • Fitzgerald views tight end Zach Miller and defensive end Chris Clemons as “too expensive” on their current deals, set to earn $7.5MM and $6MM in 2014, respectively.
  • With a cap number hovering around $76MM in 2015, Fitzgerald does not envision Seattle having any problems taking care of quarterback Russell Wilson, left tackle Russell Okung, cornerback Richard Sherman and safety Earl Thomas going forward. With the exception of Okung, who has two years left on his current deal, each player is eligible for free agency next offseason.
  • Free agent Golden Tate should not be that expensive to re-sign, says Fitzgerald, likening him to Eagles receiver Riley Cooper, who just received a five-year, $25MM contract with $10MM guaranteed.
  • Defensive lineman Michael Bennett, however, “is a trickier one” because he excelled at a premium position last season in a contract year. Fitzgerald doesn’t know if the Seahawks can retain Bennett’s services if the former Texas A&M Aggie goes for a $9-10MM/year contract.

NFC West Rumors: Wilson, Fitzgerald, Seahawks

February 4th, 2014 at 9:10pm CST by Zachary Links

Expecting to see Russell Wilson go from the pages of Pro Football Rumors to MLBTradeRumors? Unfortunately, despite some speculation to the contrary, the Seahawks star quarterback won’t be heading to spring training with the Texas Rangers, his agent tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter links). The Rangers acquired Wilson’s rights in December’s Rule 5 draft from the Rockies, but it doesn’t sound like he’ll explore being a two-sport athlete anytime soon. More out of the NFC West..

  • The Seahawks will have to create space to sign Golden Tate and Michael Bennett and extend Richard Sherman and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (via Twitter) surmises that they’ll likely cut Sidney Rice and ask Zach Miller to take a pay cut.
  • Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com weighs in with his reaction to Larry Fitzgerald‘s contract restructuring. The Cardinals wide receiver agreed to convert $11.75MM of his $12.75MM deal into a bonus to help the Cards save about $9.4MM against the cap.
  • The restructuring of Fitzgerald’s deal should all but end the trade speculation around him, writes Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald. The Patriots and Cardinals have never entertained serious trade discussions for Fitzgerald but the speculation/wishful thinking has been there for some time.