Jaguars Sign LB Telvin Smith To Four-Year, $50 Million Extension

October 25, 2017

Adam Schefter reports that the Jaguars are signing LB Telvin Smith to a four-year, $50 million extension.Jacksonville now has him under contract through the 2021 season.

According to Ian Rapoport, Smith’s extension amounts to a four-year deal worth $44.4M in new money and includes $20.5M in guaranteed. The contract can max out at $50M and Smith receives a $7.5M signing bonus.

“I am excited about the opportunity to continue my career in Jacksonville and stay with the team that believed in me coming into the league in 2014,” Smith said in a statement, while adding that he is “grateful for my family, my friends, my teammates, my coaches and the incredible Jaguars fans for always supporting me and allowing me to play this game that I love.”

“It’s been a privilege these last four years, and there is so much that I want to accomplish as a teammate and as an individual in this league,” Smith said. “We have created a bond in that locker room and everyone is committed to our goal of winning football games. I am honored to be a part of that culture and help continue to lead this team in the right direction.”

Jaguars Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tom Coughlin called Smith “a productive player and an important part of our defense.”

“He has earned this second contract,” Coughlin said in a statement. “We want to identify the players who will contribute to helping this team win going forward, and reward those who can do that. Telvin is certainly one of those players for us.”

Smith has emerged as one of the best linebackers in the league and this new extension is well deserved. He would have been one of the most sought-after players in next year’s free agent market had Jacksonville not locked him up long term.

Smith, 26, is a former fifth-round pick by the Jaguars in the 2014 NFL Draft. He is in the final year of a four-year, $2,431,052 rookie contract that included a $211,052 signing bonus and is set to make a base salary of $690,000 this season.

So far this year, Smith has appeared in all seven games and has recorded 58 total tackles, one sack, two interceptions, three pass defenses, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the No. 3 overall linebacker out of 100 qualifiers.

We had him featured in our Top 25 – 2018 NFL Free Agents list.