Outrageous Contract Floated for Vikings’ Main Rival
How does 10 years and $600 million sound for a quarterback?
Outrageous Contract Floated for Vikings’ Main Rival
That’s the latest and greatest theory from former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum, who is enormously high on Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love.
Love is eligible for a contract extension as early as now, and a deal between Love and the Packers’ front office will probably be finalized sometime this summer. Other quarterbacks, like Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys) and Tua Tagovailoa (Miami Dolphins), are awaiting extensions, and the trio may be involved in a de facto standoff.
Tannenbaum floated the behemoth 10-year, $600 deal this week on ESPN’s Unsportsmanlike show and claimed Love is approaching Patrick Mahomes’ level of greatness: “Outside of Patrick Mahomes, if we … were running an NFL team today there is nobody on the planet I’d rather have than Jordan Love.”
In 2020, Mahomes signed a 10-year, $450 million deal with the Kansas City Chiefs, a groundbreaking agreement that could evidently have a ripple effect four years later if Tannenbaum is anywhere close to accurate. Mahomes, meanwhile, has since reworked the contract with Kansas City brass to ensure his annual payment is on par with his peers. The quarterback salary market basically resets each year.
The only problem with Tannenbaum’s hot take is Love’s sustainability. Of course, Love performed marvelously in December and January last season, but before that, it took a while for the young quarterback to hit his groove. Love even fired up a rotten outing on the road at the New York Giants on December 11th, though it was just one game.
The Packers can bank on Love’s progression and development, operating under the assumption that he will scale to an elite tier of quarterbacking. That would merit the $600 million, but it leaves a lot to chance.
Some intriguing theories on quarterback contracts arose earlier this month, too. Some, including CBS Sports, believe a separate salary cap for quarterbacks could emerge. “Adopting ‘an NBA model’ might be one way to better regulate those percentages […] The NBA currently has ‘max’ and ‘supermax’ restrictions for free-agent and long-term contracts, limiting the number of players teams can sign to a certain dollar amount, while capping the percentage of the salary cap for which maximum deals account,” Cody Benjamin wrote on June 19th. “The idea ‘really hasn’t gained traction’ among NFL owners, however, ‘in part because so many teams have paid their quarterback,’ contributing to the position’s escalating market.”
Ten-year megadeals are somewhat popular in Major League Baseball, but virtually none are wise near the deal’s end.
Love will turn 26 in November and should receive an extension in the next couple of months, regardless of Tannenbaum’s brazen endorsement.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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