News broke earlier today that the Detroit Lions and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown have agreed to a four-year $120 million contract extension. The deal also includes a record (for wide receivers) $77 million guaranteed. The previous wide receiver record was $75 million by Los Angeles Rams star Cooper Kupp.
There is no question that St. Brown, a former fourth round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, deserves the large payday. Since he was not a first round pick, there was no fifth year option for the Lions exercise as in the case’s of St. Brown’s contemporaries Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson. Chase was drafted the same year as St. Brown while Jefferson was taken a year prior.
In other words, St. Brown was entering the final year of his rookie contract before signing this extension with Detroit. There was a possibility that he could have left via free agency had the two sides not agreed to a deal before next offseason (in all reality, the Lions would have franchise tagged him if it got to that point).
How Does the Detroit Lions Contract with Amon-Ra St. Brown Affect the Minnesota Vikings and Justin Jefferson
The Cincinnati Bengals reported today that they have exercised the fifth year option on Ja’Marr Chase. Like St. Brown, he is entering his fourth year in the NFL and now is tied to Cincinnati for at least the next two seasons.
Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings, however, will be playing on his fifth year option this season. In other words, he is going to hit free agency next offseason unless he agrees to an extension with the Vikings before then.
One would assume that St. Brown’s record-setting deal with Detroit will not remain the top wide receiver contract for long. While he is a two-time Pro Bowler and was a First Team All-Pro last season, Jefferson is widely considered to be the better player.
This, of course, means that the Vikings will certainly be expected to pay Jefferson more than $30 million a year and guarantee him more than $77 million on his next contract.
How Does Amon-Ra St. Brown’s Numbers with the Detroit Lions Compare to Justin Jefferson’s with the Minnesota Vikins?
When considering how much Jefferson will be paid compared to St. Brown, it is important to note that last season, Jefferson’s fourth year in the NFL, he had his statistically worst season with 68 receptions, 1,074 yards, and five touchdowns. The caveat to these numbers, though, is that he only played in 10 games.
For the sake of comparison, here are Jefferson’s numbers from his first three years in the NFL compared to St. Brown’s:
Year 1
Justin Jefferson | Amon-Ra St. Brown | |
Receptions | 88 | 90 |
Yards | 1400 | 912 |
Touchdowns | 7 | 5 |
Year 2
Justin Jefferson | Amon-Ra St. Brown | |
Receptions | 108 | 106 |
Yards | 1616 | 1161 |
Touchdowns | 10 | 6 |
Year 3
Justin Jefferson | Amon-Ra St. Brown | |
Receptions | 128 | 119 |
Yards | 1809 | 1515 |
Touchdowns | 8 | 10 |
If Jefferson stays healthy all next season, which he should, there is no reason to doubt that his next contract will be significantly more than St. Brown’s.
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