Field Gulls
Three Seahawks players in line for contract extension.
With NFL training camps beginning to open up across the league, many teams are starting to lock up some of their star players as they enter their contract year. Of those teams, the New York Jets have been quite busy, locking up new deals with star wide receiver, Garrett Wilson, and star cornerback, Sauce Gardner up the same day. These contracts are something to keep an eye on for Seattle Seahawks fans because Seattle has some star players of their own at both the wide receiver and cornerback positions who are entering the final year of their contract or will be in position to be extended as soon as next offseason.
First, let’s look at the wide receiver position. Garrett Wilson’s former Ohio State teammate, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, surely was keeping an eye at the new contract that Wilson just signed. Wilson, a 2022 first-round draft pick out of Ohio State, showed his talent quickly in the NFL, earning Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2022 and logging at least 80 receptions, 1,000 yards, and three touchdowns in each of his first three years, all of this with subpar quarterback play as well. This has added up to a large pay-day for Wilson.
The exact contract numbers have not come out; however, the reported contract was a 4-year, $130 million contract including a $13.75 million signing bonus, and $90 million guaranteed. This comes out to $32.5 million average salary, which would put Wilson fifth among receivers in terms of annual pay. The receivers above Wilson? That would be Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, and DK Metcalf (remember him?).
When looking at Jaxon Smith-Njigba, there a few things to consider with Wilson’s numbers and how it could affect Smith-Njigba. First, Smith-Njigba still has a full season to play before he can even be extended (the NFL does not allow rookie contracts to be extended until after the player has finished their third season). This brings up a few factors.
