The Houston Texans signed outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus to a four-year, $54.5 million extension with $24.5 million guaranteed, his second contract extension since the club drafted him in Round 1 of the 2012 NFL draft.
Though the 29-year-old’s production has been inconsistent in 2019, the extension should come as no surprise. After the Texans beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 16, coach Bill O’Brien raved of Mercilus and stated he’d like to bring him back.
“He tries to do whatever he can to do what’s best for the team. He is an excellent teammate,” O’Brien said of Mercilus. “We want Whitney back here and we want him to be a part of our team for a while. It was great to see him break through with a sack, but he does a lot of other things other than that that help us win.”
A week later, the Texans did what they wanted to do: extend Mercilus.
In 2019, Mercilus leads the Texans with 7.5 sacks, nine tackles for loss, and his 15 QB hits only trail defensive end J.J. Watt’s 21. Mercilus has also been disruptive with the ball in the air as he has collected two pass deflections and two interceptions. While his statistics don’t scream $54.5 million, his veteran leadership, edge setting and presence as a pass-rusher help make up for them.
Mercilus is the rare case of a player that started with a team and then earned two extensions with that club. That should come as no surprise. He’s a constant leader in the locker room and the community.
Houston will pay Mercilus an annual value of $13.5 million a year, making him the NFL’s 16th highest-paid edge rusher. However, the official contract may not quite resemble that. In the extension, Houston should opt to front-load the money, especially the guarantees.
The Texans may have slightly overpaid for Mercilus, but the reality of the matter is that edge rushers will always be overpaid. If Houston did stack the contract as they should, paying him less as time wears on, the deal looks like a solid one for a foundational piece of their defense.
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