The New York Jets announced that they’ve signed franchise DL Muhammad Wilkerson to a multi-year extension.
- Jason La Canfora reports that Wilkerson receives a five-year, $86 million contract with $37 million fully guaranteed and $54 million over the next three years.
This is the biggest shock of the day, as there was no indication that the two sides were going to be able to get a deal done before today’s deadline.
A recent from last week said that the Jets were at least expected to make another run at locking him up, and it appears as though they were able to bridge the gap just in time.
You have to feel good for Wilkerson, who has really earned a long-term deal and has been the Jets’ best defensive player for a few years now. He is, however, coming off of a broken leg, so that’s something to monitor in the coming weeks.
Wilkerson, 26, is a former first-round pick of the Jets back in 2011. He played out his rookie contract with the team and was in line to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason before the Jets used their franchise tag on him.
The franchise tag would have run the Jets $15.701 million fully guaranteed for the 2016 season.
In 2015, Wilkerson recorded 59 tackles, 12 sacks, two forced fumbles and six pass defenses over the course of 15 games. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the No. 5 defensive end in a 3-4 system out of 57 qualifying players.
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