Patrick Mahomes completely changed the NFL landscape on Monday, although that wouldn’t be the first time that the young Texas Tech product has done so. This time however, Mahomes is making his impact off the field. The Kansas City Chiefs have agreed to a stunning 10-year extension worth around $450M. While numbers aren’t finalized, it’s safe to say Mahomes is going to be the the owner of the biggest contract in sports history.
What this move really does from an Eagles perspective is highlight the vision of Howie Roseman.
Carson Wentz signed a four-year extension last offseason, keeping him in Philadelphia through 2024.
Here’s how that contract looks:
2019: $720,000 base salary
2020: $1.383 million base salary/ $8 million roster bonus
2021: $3.9 million base salary, $10 million roster bonus
2022: $18.5 million base salary, $1,000 roster bonus
2023: $18 million base salary, $5 million roster bonus
2024: $21 million base salary, $5 million roster bonus
Signing bonus: $16,367,683
Incentives/escalators: $16 million
Roseman has long been known for his cap-savvy mentality and it showed here. The deal is structured in a way that buys the Eagles a lot of leverage, especially for the first three years of the deal. Sure, making Wentz the $107M (guaranteed) man sounded intimidating to some. He was coming off of a 2018 campaign that ended prematurely due to a back problem, knowing fully well that if he rebounds and sets the NFL on fire as many expected, the price would sky-rocket.
Wentz ended 2019 with 4,039 passing yards (despite not having a 1,000-yard receiver), 27 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, and 4 game-winning drives. Considering the total lack of help around him, this was a truly remarkable season and one that would’ve left Howie swiping sweat from his forehead knowing the deal is done.
This also doesn’t take into account the fact that the Eagles pipped the Cowboys to the post. Dak still hasn’t signed an extension and this groundbreaking new deal for Mahomes is only going to drive Dak’s price up if he has another good season.
Mahomes has totally reset the game for franchise quarterbacks. Names like Deshaun Watson and Lamar Jackson will now have to be approached in a totally different way, and this goes without mentioning the more recently-drafted Kyler Murray or Joe Burrow – both of whom could well be looking to secure monumental paydays by the time that Carson Wentz is just coming to the end of his first major contract extension at age 32.
Howie Roseman’s foresight has come up big for the Eagles here, who while they may have a big contract to manage, can be safe in the knowledge that they have an elite QB talent at a fraction of the price of what that caliber of player will cost by the time the contract really begins to soar in value.
Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
