In a move that’s been expected for quite some time now, the Rams have extended the contract of quarterback Jared Goff, keeping the Cal product in Los Angeles for the next six years. The figure itself, of course, exceeds the value of the $129M contract handed to Carson Wentz this offseason, the man selected one pick later than Goff back in 2016.
The Eagles guaranteed Wentz $107.8M, but Goff’s $110M eclipses that mark, just as Howie Roseman predicted.
The Eagles entered this offseason with a tough predicament. With limited cap space, they would have had far more leverage in a contract negotiation because making a case for Wentz to become the $200M man is still difficult.
One year removed from what would’ve been an almost certain MVP award had it not been for a torn ACL in week 14, Wentz re-joined the offense in 2018, 3 weeks into the campaign and went on to pass for over 3,000 yards, 21 touchdowns and a completion percentage of 69%. In just 11 games, he finished in the top 10 for QB rating, ahead of Jared Goff, Andrew Luck, Dak Prescott, and Ben Roethlisberger.
His play, while exhilarating, has been erratic and careless at times, while the two season-ending injuries don’t exactly paint much of a reliable picture. On the inverse of that, Wentz lights up the NFL like few others can when fully healthy and you’ll struggle to find a more explosive offense heading into this season.
If the Eagles risked not handingWentz a contract extension this offseason, there’s a very good chance he would break his already scintillating career records and guide the Eagles to a third consecutive playoff berth and in doing so would command a much steeper price. A price that was likely to be even higher anyway given the likelihood that one of the other quarterbacks from that class (Goff, Prescott) were also sniffing for contract extensions.
The Eagles cashed in on a quarterback with elite potential who hasn’t yet found the balance of health and production. Roseman saw an opening to leap ahead of the opposition and set the bar for the rest of the position, just as he did with Cox, Jenkins, Lane Johnson and even Zach Ertz.
This left not only the Rams forced to play a subjectively inferior talent who had just pushed his way into a Super Bowl berth, a lot more money, and even better news for the Eagles, is that the cushion now rises again for Dak Prescott.
The Cowboys are the Eagles only real NFC East contenders this year and with their already controversial ‘Zeke negotiation’ going about as well as expected, this is fantastic news. Dak could take a ‘team-friendly’ deal to help Dallas, but the reality is he’s now seen Goff and Wentz both become the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback within months of each other and he will absolutely feel he deserves a slice of the pie. If Dallas handcuffs themselves to Dak long-term, not only will the price be inflated…but they’ll be handcuffed to Dak long-term.
The genius of Howie Roseman shows once again. Jumping the market, setting the value, cashing in when the value is high and watching the rest of the league scramble. For fans of ‘Shaun of the Dead’: Howie signed Wentz and went to the Winchester to grab a nice cold pint and wait for all this to blow over. Delightful.
Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
