The New Orleans Saints and left guard Andrus Peat agreed to a five-year contract extension on Friday, reports NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport added that the contract is worth $57.5 million and guarantees $33 million. The official Saints website confirmed the news.
That’s not a bad payout for a two-time Pro Bowler. An average of $11.5 million per year is near the market value for a starting guard of his age and experience, even though Peat has often been the weak link in the Saints offensive line in recent years. Some of that is due to a long list of injuries he’s accumulated, including a broken arm in the 2019 season.
With so few options left on the open market, Peat was very likely the highest-graded available free agent. He has had some good moments despite the negative plays and could quickly change his career’s narrative with a streak of good health. But his poor level of play and lengthy injury history are enough to create some reasonable pause.
At least for now, the Saints are projected to go into the 2020 season with the same starting five offensive linemen. Peat figures to start at left guard between Terron Armstead at left tackle and Erik McCoy at center, with right guard Larry Warford and right tackle Ryan Ramczyk anchoring the other side.
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