There’s a good chance Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was just as anxious about the franchise tag as safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson.
The Eagles didn’t place the tag on Gardner-Johnson by the deadline Tuesday afternoon, meaning that he can become a free agent next week. No doubt, Gardner-Johnson is euphoric by this development.
But Hurts, who wasn’t eligible for the tag, was interested in the franchise tag because it could have everything to do with his next contract. And Hurts was also no doubt euphoric when it was reported at the deadline that the Giants have reached a long-term contract agreement with quarterback Daniel Jones.
The NFL Network reported that Jones will sign a four-year deal worth as much as $160 million for an average annual value of $40 million per year for a quarterback who is right around average. There is reportedly an extra $35 million in incentives, which can bring that average even higher.
That, more than anything else, will set the market for Hurts’ next contract. And that will most likely make Hurts the highest paid quarterback in the NFL − for a little while anyway. As of now, Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers has an average annual value of $50 million as he shops around for his next team.
But Jones is not nearly as good as Rodgers, and he’s also not nearly as good as Hurts. That can only help Hurts because the Eagles want to sign him to a contract extension during this offseason.
So now Hurts has a benchmark − Jones’ deal, plus a lot more.
This was already shaping up as a good week for Hurts. But Jones’ deal was the proverbial icing on the cake. On Monday, Derek Carr agreed a four-year deal worth reportedly as much as $150 million with the New Orleans Saints, an annual average value of $37.5 million. Like Jones, Carr is not much better than average.
The same is true of Seahawks QB Geno Smith, the 32-year-old career journeyman up until last season. He’s re-signing for three years and as much as $105 million, or $35 million average.
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Hurts can command a lot more than all of those quarterbacks.
It’s why Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson has to be seething that the Ravens placed the franchise tag on him Tuesday after they’ve been at an impasse for more than a year.
The franchise tag for quarterbacks is $32 million for this coming season, all of which counts on the salary cap.
So Hurts will no doubt surpass the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes (average annual value $45 million per season), Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson (fully guaranteed $46 million per season), Arizona’s Kyler Murray ($46 million), Denver’s Russell Wilson ($49 million), and Rodgers − and whatever team his recently completed darkness retreat leads him to.
Hurts has Jones and the Giants to thank.
Yes, that Daniel Jones whose career record is 21-31-1, who has a career passer rating of 86.5, and who has 57 turnovers in 64 games.
Yet Jones had all the power because the Giants wanted to place the franchise tag on running back Saquon Barkley, which they did after Jones agreed to his deal.
Teams can only place the tag on one player, so it made obvious sense for the Giants to use it on Barkley because the tag for a running back is $10.1 million. If the Giants used it on Jones, then Barkley would have become a free agent, leaving the Giants without a top-notch running back.
The repercussion is that Hurts will now be resetting the quarterback market. So Hurts had to be thrilled that Jones is getting paid.
Just look at the numbers.
Jones had by far his best season in 2022, completing 67.2% of his passes for 3,205 yards with 15 TDs against just five interceptions and passer rating of 92.5. He also ran for 708 yards and seven TDs.
Hurts also had by far his best season in 2022, but his was much better than Jones’ as he finished as the MVP runner-up to Mahomes. Hurts completed 66.5% of his passes, threw for 3,701 yards and 22 TDs with six INTs and a passer rating of 101.5. Hurts also ran for 760 yards and 13 TDs.
Hurts’ career record is 23-11, including 14-1 last season. He was one Eagles’ defensive stop away from being the Super Bowl MVP.
This was why Hurts didn’t seem to be in a hurry to sign a contract extension. The Eagles have made it clear that they want to do a deal during this offseason rather than after the season.
Hurts still has one year left on his rookie contract, which counts $4.9 million against the salary cap, a veritable bargain after leading the Eagles to the Super Bowl.
Eagles GM Howie Roseman, speaking last week at the NFL scouting combine, said that the Eagles want to find something that’s a “win-win” for both the Eagles and Hurts. Then he added: “That doesn’t mean it’s not going to be a tremendous contract for him because he deserves that, too.”
Sure, the Eagles could wait until next offseason before signing Hurts to that extension.
But the Eagles don’t want to go that route. By signing Hurts during this offseason, they can begin spacing out Hurts’ signing bonus over the life of the contract.
That will add a good $10 million-$15 million to Hurts’ $4.9 million cap charge in 2023. But that’s still a bargain for an MVP-caliber quarterback. And the Eagles can make the salary cap hits in future years somewhat more manageable with voidable years.
Watson, for example, counts $55 million on the Browns’ cap in each of the next four seasons. That’s approximately one-fourth of the team’s total cap for this season alone, estimated at $225 million.
If the Eagles wait, they’ll save money on the cap this season. But they will pay dearly afterward, especially considering that 2020 first-round picks in Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow, the Chargers’ Justin Herbert and Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa will be eligible for extensions after this season.
And if quarterback salaries are already skyrocketing, imagine what they will be next year when those three are up for extensions.
Sure, the Eagles can go the franchise tag route with Hurts next March, and possibly again the following year. But that’s only prolonging the inevitable. If the Eagles see Hurts as the franchise quarterback for the next five years at least, then the Eagles will be saving money in the long run by giving him that payday now.
Hurts knows this, too. That’s why he was willing to wait for Jones to get a new deal first.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
