In 2019, Detroit Lions WR Kenny Golladay emerged as one of the top receivers in the NFL as he caught 65 passes for 1,190 yards and 11 touchdowns. It was second-straight year going over 1,000 yards and despite being selected in the 3rd Round of the 2017 NFL Draft, he is now in the conversation of which receivers are the top 10 in the league.
For Golladay, his breakout season came at the perfect time as he is going into the final year of his rookie contract and it’s about time for him to get paid in a big way. The question is, will the Lions pay him to remain in the Motor City for the foreseeable future?
One of Lions’ GM Bob Quinn’s most important decisions this offseason is whether or not he will give Golladay a hefty contract extension or if he will wait and see how he performs in 2020 and roll the dice on the team’s best WR hitting free agency.
There are two big questions that need to be answered. First, how much will it cost the Lions to give Golladay an extension, and second, is it worth it to pay that much money to a wide receiver?
In a piece recently published on LionsWire, Erik Schlitt took a hard look at Golladay’s situation and projected what an extension would look like. Schlitt projects that an extension for Golladay would likely be $17-18 million per season for four seasons.
At the end of the day, that’s where I see this contract landing. Averaging somewhere between $17 and $18 million per season, and structured as a 4-year contract totaling between $68 and $72 million, with $36-40 million guaranteed.
Schlitt believes that salary is “not far off” in terms of what he deserves.
A four year, $72 million deal, averaging $18 million a year, would put Golladay on par with Beckham Jr. and Tyreek Hill, tied for the fifth-highest receiver contracts in the NFL, while also matching the contract average the Lions gave Trey Flowers in 2019.
Is Golladay worth that high of salary? I don’t think it’s far off.
Personally, I was hoping the Lions used a higher draft pick in this year’s draft to select a wide receiver so they would have a potential replacement if they decide Golladay’s demands are too steep, but Quinn did not do that.
My opinion is that wide receivers are overvalued in the NFL but GMs around the league obviously disagree with me because they keep getting large contracts.
That being said, the Lions have plenty of salary-cap space, and finding a way to keep Golladay around as a weapon for Matthew Stafford may be what is best for this team.
