contract situation – Syndication Server

Geno Smith confirms he approached the Seahawks for a new contract

One of the more unexpected storylines emerging from the Seattle Seahawks during the preseason was a report about quarterback Geno Smith wanting a new contract. The Seahawks signed Smith to a three-year deal prior to the start of last season, which puts Smith squarely in year two for the 2024 campaign. Still, NFL insider Mike Garafolo broke the news in mid-August that Smith’s camp had reached out to the Seahawks regarding a new deal.

When asked about this report, Seahawks general manager John Schneider did not go into much detail, clearly not allowing the rumor to be a distraction. He essentially brushed off the question as simply being business as usual.

This attitude is clearly shared by the man who wants the new contract himself, Geno Smith. On Thursday, Smith confirmed to the media he and his team did reach out to the Seahawks about a new contract. However, Smith was equally as vague with the specific details.

Smith mentioned “I mean, that’s just normal business. Nothing wrong with that.”

It is understandable why Smith would be interested in another contract extension. Although he is signed through the 2025 season, there is no more guaranteed money left on the deal. On the flip side, it’s also understandable why Seattle isn’t racing to give Smith another contract. With no more guaranteed money left, and a young quarterback waiting in the wings in Sam Howell, it makes sense for the Seahawks to see how the 2024 season plays out.

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Chiefs GM Brett Veach comments on Patrick Mahomes’ contract amidst rising QB market

#Chiefs GM Brett Veach says the team will assess Patrick Mahomes’ contract after a few more NFL quarterbacks are extended by their respective teams.

Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes’ contract is looking more and more like a steal with each passing day. However, the organization knows that there will soon come a day when they’ll need to sweeten the deal.

Speaking to media members in his pre-draft press conference, Chiefs GM Brett Veach answered all sorts of questions about the 2023 NFL draft and even free agency. He was also asked about the latest contracts for franchise quarterbacks around the league and whether the team would consider a reworked deal for Patrick Mahomes in the future.

“We have a special relationship with him and his agent,” Veach said. “We’re in constant communication, as you mentioned. It’s one of those things, and I think Coach (Reid) hinted on this in his last press conference, as soon as one guy gets done it’s kind of the blueprint and the model and two years later, it’s jumped and exceeded. But I think that this organization and the relationship that with have with Pat, we’ll always be working to make sure that we’re doing right by everybody. There will be a couple more contracts that still have to be done (Bengals QB Joe) Burrow and (Chargers QB Justin) Herbert and once they do, I think we’ll kind of look at everything and assess where you are and what you can do and take it from there.”

Eagles QB Jalen Hurts recently received a five-year, $255 million contract extension. That pushed Mahomes down to sixth in the NFL in average-per-year value at $45 million. After Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, Bengals QB Joe Burrow and Chargers QB Justin Herbert sign new deals, it’s highly likely that Mahomes is barely coming in at the top 10 in average-per-year value.

Never mind the fact that he’s the only one of those top-paid QBs with two Super Bowl wins. It makes plenty of sense that the Chiefs would want to rework his deal to keep it competitive with the top quarterback contracts in the NFL.

That prospect may concern some fans, but when Mahomes signed his 10-year extension back in 2020, he was keen on structuring his deal in a way that helps the team. It’s a safe bet that he’ll continue to work within a framework that gives Kansas City a lot of flexibility for the future.

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Poll: Should the Jaguars retain Brandon Linder?

The Jags are set to owe Linder $10 million in 2022, per Spotrac. When considering his injury history, could they look to shed that salary this offseason?

As the Jacksonville Jaguars enter the 2022 offseason, they’re set to have among the most cap space in the league to spend once again. Per Spotrac, the Jaguars are slated to have the fourth-most cap space in the league with the projection sitting at just over $61 million.

While that gives the team a lot of options in free agency, it may look to shed more money. After all, this is shaping up to be a transitional offseason with a new head coach and possibly a new general manager at the helm. As a result, the Jags could reexamine some of their pricier contracts on the books, and that could lead to tough questions involving some of the team’s veterans, such as Brandon Linder.

The center has been a franchise centerpiece for nearly the last decade. A third-round pick out of Miami in 2014, he has started all 88 games he’s appeared in over the last eight seasons. He’s under contract through 2022 on a five-year, $51.7 million extension which made him the highest-paid center in the league when he signed it in 2017.

At one point, he was living up to that contract. But after an injury-plagued season in 2021 in which he missed eight games, it may be time to reconsider. The final year of his deal is set to be one of the most expensive with a projected cap hit of $10 million.

Injuries have been a recurring theme throughout his career, as he’s missed 41 games since entering the league. His play has also dropped off a bit. Once among the NFL’s best centers, he graded just 25th out of 38 centers for the 2021 season, per Pro Football Focus.

Moving on from Linder with one year left on his deal would leave the Jags with yet another important position to address this offseason, but they could almost certainly find a cheaper option who, at the very least, would be able to stay on the field. If that’s the route the team wishes to go down, its choices regarding Linder could be limited.

Given the eight-figure salary in 2022 and his injury history, Jacksonville would probably be hard-pressed to find a trade suitor for him. Realistically, if it wanted to save that cap space this offseason, it would likely need to cut him.

He’s one of several players that could become a cap casualty this offseason, but with that being said, the Jaguars aren’t exactly pinching pennies and could afford to keep him around if they wanted to.

Should the Jags keep Linder for the final year of his contract and reevaluate next offseason when he becomes a free agent? Or should they make a move now and release him to give the team more to spend? Let us know in the poll below.

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