A.J. Green & Bengals “Ramp Up” Extension Talks, Green Targeting $15M Per Year

Update:

A league source tells Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk, that although the Bengals and WR A.J. Green are discussing a contract extension, the two sides are not close to an agreement at this point in time.

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Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that contract talks between the Bengals and WR A.J. Green have picked up “significantly” over the past few days.

• According to Rapoport, the Bengals are confident that a deal will get done, but he cautions that there is still more work to be done.
• Jason La Canfora continues to hear that Green is looking to beat the contract recently signed by Falcons WR Julio Jones, which wound up being a six-year, $81.432 million contract that included $47 million guaranteed.

Meanwhile, Jason Cole of B/R doesn’t expect anything to get done before the start of the season, as Green is looking to be the second highest paid player in the league.

According to Cole, Green is targeting a $15 million annual salary, which could prove to be problematic, given that Cincinnati is unlikely to offer him a huge amount of guaranteed money.

The Bengals have shown a tendency to wait out situations like this for the best possible deal, and they do have their franchise tag at their disposal if needed.

At $15 million per year, Green would come in ahead of newly signed receivers such as Dez Bryant, Demaryius Thomas, Julio Jones and T.Y.Hilton.

Green, 27, appeared in 13 games last season and caught 69 passes for 1,041 yards receiving and six touchdowns for the Bengals. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the No. 15 receiver out of 110 qualifying players.

We’ll have more regarding Green and the Bengals as the news becomes available.