Now that the 49ers have taken care of QB Colin Kaepernick, there is already buzz surrounding the next group of young quarterbacks who are in position to receive raises in the near future.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the word around NFL right now is that Colts QB Andrew Luck and Seahawks QB Russell Wilson are expected to secure as much as $24-$25 million per year in their next contracts.
While this may seem somewhat staggering given that they would both be the highest paid quarterbacks in the league, the salary cap is expected to continue increasing over the next few years and their respective teams would essentially be market value for the best years of their careers.
Last year Wilson appeared 16 games and completed 63.1 percent of his passes for 3,357 yards, 26 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. He also added 539 yards rushing and a touchdown.
Luck, meanwhile, 16 games, completed 60.2 percent of his passes for 3,822 yards, 23 touchdowns and 9 interceptions in 2014. He also added 337 yards rushing and a four touchdowns.
Another interesting case to watch is Cam Newton who is currently able negotiate a long-term deal. The Panthers picked up his fifth-year option, which will end up running them over $16 million if the figure stays close to the 2014 total.
There is no question that the Colts will be picking up Luck’s fifth-year option, but the Seahawks don’t have that option as Wilson was a third-round selection. With this in mind, Seattle will almost certainly get contract negotiations underway as soon as they possibly can, but they will have to wait until 2015 do so because the new CBA prevents teams from negotiating with players in their rookie contracts until the final year of their respective deals.
Here’s a simple breakdown of the top contracts in the game based on info provided by OverTheCap.com.
Name |
Total Value |
APY |
Full Guarantee |
| Aaron Rodgers | $110,000,000 | $22,000,000 | $54,000,000 |
| Matt Ryan | $103,750,000 | $20,750,000 | $42,000,000 |
| Matt Stafford | $53,000,000 | $17,666,667 | $41,500,000 |
| Drew Brees | $100,000,000 | $20,000,000 | $40,000,000 |
| Tony Romo | $108,000,000 | $18,000,000 | $40,000,000 |
| Jay Cutler | $126,700,000 | $18,100,000 | $38,000,000 |
| Eli Manning | $97,500,000 | $16,250,000 | $35,000,000 |
| Joe Flacco | $120,600,000 | $20,100,000 | $29,000,000 |
| Peyton Manning | $96,000,000 | $19,200,000 | $18,000,000 |
| Colin Kaepernick | $126,000,000 | $21,000,000 | $12,973,000 |
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