McLaurin became the 9th WR this offseason to make over $20 million annually
On Tuesday, the Washington Commanders extended wide receiver Terry McLaurin on a three-year extension worth up to $71 million. McLaurin becomes the ninth receiver to get over $20 million annually this offseason. He won’t be the last, as the final two are in the NFC East.
A deeper dive into McLaurin’s contract gives us a better idea of Samuel’s potential deal. ‘Touchdown Terry’ received $53.1 million guaranteed, with $34.6 million of that coming fully guaranteed at the signing. McLaurin also received a $28 million signing bonus.
A deal will get done between the 49ers and Deebo. That feels inevitable. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler was on TV over the weekend saying Samuel hasn’t rescinded his trade request, but that ignores him not only showing up to minicamp, but Deebo was also running along the side.
Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson wrote there’s “optimism surrounding a potentially huge deal” between the Niners and Samuel. Wilson also mentioned that DK Metcalf would be among the highest, if not the highest, paid wideout in the NFL.
If I’m San Francisco, and the two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, I’m getting a deal done before Metcalf gets paid. Looking at it from the business side, the last thing you want is Samuel getting the temptation to hold out for more money than he’s already getting. And while it’s an extreme example, we’re not far off from Samuel’s trade request.
There has been some debate about whether McLaurin’s deal is Samuel’s floor. Deebo had 344 more yards receiving and did so with 766 fewer intended air yards. Of course, that’s before we get into the other factors like having a Kittle or an entire defense scheming against you. McLaurin also had 11 more targets.
McLaurin is a fringe top-10 receiver, but he didn’t have the same impact as Samuel did a season ago. Because of that, I’d lean toward Deebo having the larger contract.
Leave a Reply