It wasn’t long ago that Patrick Mahomes’ contract with the Kansas City Chiefs was viewed as a historic pact and record-setting deal for arguably the premier player of his generation.
After all, it was only five years ago that Mahomes and the Chiefs put pen to paper on a ten-year contract worth $450 million contract extension, and just last year that a restructured guaranteed $210.6 million through the 2026 campaign, at the time the highest among quarterbacks in league history.
But Friday, the Green Bay Packers signed Jordan Love and the Miami Dolphins inked Tua Tagovailoa to extension that put Mahomes’ AAV even further off into the distance in the rearview mirror.
Patrick Mahomes Responds to ‘Underpaid’ Suggestions
While Mahomes still leads the league in total contract value, thanks to the previously unprecedented 10-year life of his deal, he’s nowhere close to the highest-paid quarterback annually despite winning three Super Bowl rings and beginning a quest for the Chiefs’ third consecutive title this fall.
Jared Goff, Tagovailoa, Joe Burrow, Love, and Trevor Lawrence all will collect at least $53 million, annually, over the life of their current contracts.
But, even though Mahomes’ contract averages out to $45 million per season, the three-time Super Bowl MVP isn’t worried about how his salary stacks up.
“It’s awesome for the game of football,” Mahomes told USA Today Sports on Sunday. “It’s awesome for the quarterback position, but I think all positions.
“I know every time a contract comes up, everybody looks at my APY [average per year] and everything like that. I’m doing pretty well myself. For me, it’s just about going out there trying to win football games, trying to make money for my family at the end of the day. I feel like I’m doing a great job of that.”
To the Chiefs’ credit, Kansas City has already reworked Mahomes’ deal once, and the star quarterback seems more concerned about the organization’s ability to put elite talent around him than comparing his salary to his peers.
As the salary cap continues to rise, and if Mahomes continues to outperform, there’s no reason to think he won’t reside at or near the top of the league in AAV in coming years, even if he doesn’t today.
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