UPDATE:
According to Pro Football Focus, the Detroit Lions are closing in on a deal with Kenny Golladay.
Previous UPDATE:
Kenny Golladay spoke to reporters on Monday and according to Dave Birkett, the Lions wide receiver said he is “confident” a new deal will be done soon.
“No worry right now,” Golladay said. “But I mean, as of right now I can only control what I control. I want to be here. Really, I’m just going to let my agent and front office take care of that. Pretty sure something will get done.”
Original report (July 22):
One of the biggest decisions Detroit Lions general manager Bob Quinn will have to make during the current offseason is in regards to a contract extension for WR Kenny Golladay.
Golladay, who is going into the final year of his rookie contract, has reportedly told friends that he expects to sign a long-term deal with the Lions before the 2020 season kicks off.
In a piece published in the Detroit Free Press on Wednesday, Dave Birkett pointed out that NFL salary cap Joel Corry expects Golladay to get paid in a big way. In fact, Corry believes that when the deal is done, Golladay will be one of the Top 5 paid wide receivers in the NFL.
From Detroit Free Press:
“I was thinking that Mike Evans would be the floor,” Corry said Tuesday. “That was done in early 2018. And I would imagine he’s looking at that Amari Cooper deal going, ‘Hey, we need to be in that range.’ But with a better structure.”
“I expect him to come in the top five,” said Corry, who hosts the “Inside the Cap” podcast.
“The good-to-great players are going to get paid no matter what environment, cause ultimately you’re going to sign your core players,” Corry said. “They’re going to get paid in free agency (if they reach it), but given the uncertainty and just in case things don’t go the way I’m anticipating (with the salary cap), you’d rather be locked in. Cause we know there’s not going to be a huge jump in the cap, so there’s no benefit to waiting from that standpoint.”
Corry said Golladay’s final contract could end up in the $18 million-per-season range, which would slot him behind Jones, Cooper and Thomas among highest-paid receivers.
Whoa! $18 million per season for a wide receiver seems kind of crazy but that is also (roughly) the number that Eric Schlitt of Lions Wire came up with for a Golladay extension, so my guess is that it is accurate.
Writer projects Kenny Golladay’s next contract with Lions to be a hefty one
Nation, should the Lions pony up $18 million for Kenny Golladay? Do they really have a choice?
