Patrick Mahomes scores $450M contract extension
The Super Bowl-winning quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs is awarded the richest contract in league history
Kansas City waited 50 years for a Super Bowl championship. Now they’ve broken open the Brinks truck to make sure the man that got them there is rewarded with more than just the Lombardi trophy.
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The Chiefs announced today that Patrick Mahomes, 24, the Texas quarterback sensation that has been both a league and a Super Bowl MVP, signed on to a 10-year contract extension worth at least $450M, reported ESPN.
The deal puts Mahomes under contract for the next 12 seasons as the team had already picked up his fifth-year option for 2021. With the deal, according to ESPN, Mahomes becomes the highest-paid player in pro sports. However, Los Angeles Angels centerfielder Mike Trout has the most lucrative contract that is fully guaranteed.
ESPN NFL corresponding Adam Schefter was told that Mahomes’ contract comes with a $140M injury guarantee, but the whole contract is not guaranteed but has guarantee “mechanisms.” Although the term confused some fans, it sounds like the deal is constructed in such a way that with incentives that it could potentially end up the most high-paying deal in sports ever.
Mahomes, the former Texas Tech standout, is the youngest Super Bowl MVP in league history a year after becoming the league MVP, a two-fer that he earned before age 25, making him the first player to do do.
Despite battling a knee and ankle injury that cost him two games, Mahomes was stellar in his 31-20 Super Bowl victory vs. the San Franciso 49ers, throwing three touchdowns and overcoming a 10-point deficit in the game. He finished 26 of 42 for 286 yards with a 78.6 passer rating, despite two interceptions.
Sports Twitter, including some of Mahomes’ teammates and fellow athletes, celebrated his contract on social media.
Dak Prescott, the Cowboys quarterback and his agent are likely looking at this deal to leverage his stalled contract negotiations. While he can’t boast Mahomes’ stats, Prescott is the franchise quarterback who has yet to come to terms with the team on a new contract.
But the speculation is that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, who was the most exciting player to watch in the league last season though he fell short in the playoffs, will likely be the biggest beneficiary of Mahomes’ mega-deal when he re-signs with the team.
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