Much NFL offseason talk has surrounded the looming contracts of the league's top quarterbacks. Could Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes be due an epic raise?
One month ago, when Patrick Mahomes declared that his top priority on the Kansas City Chiefs was to win more rings, he quelled the contract rumors for the time being.
But with the ebb and flow of speculation, Mahomes' contract has yet again turned into a six-headed monster, one that refuses to die for as long as Mahomes isn't the highest-paid quarterback in the league.
Facts are facts: Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the NFL right now. The best quarterback should theoretically be the highest-paid quarterback, but such is not the case. Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson recently leapfrogged Mahomes in annual average value in their newly inked deals, causing some NFL pundits to wonder whether the Chiefs are preparing to give Mahomes a hefty raise this offseason.
Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio said of Mahomes' future financials:
I was told weeks ago that before the season begins, he will once again be the highest-paid player in the NFL. And I know he's not about money, it's about championships and yada yada. Well look, when he got his most recent contract four years ago, it jumped the highest-paid player in the NFL by $10 million a year, and now he's been jumped by seven million a year by players who aren't in his same category.
Florio goes on to say how the situation makes the Chiefs and Mahomes look bad. It makes Kansas City look bad for seemingly undervaluing a generational talent, and it makes Mahomes look "like a sucker."
Chiefs may begrudgingly give Patrick Mahomes a big raise this offseason
Roughly three years ago, Mahomes inked the biggest contract in American sports history, signing a 10-year, $450 million extension. In terms of total contract value, Mahomes still leads the pack by nearly $200 million, but in terms of annual salary, he ranks seventh in the league.
Anybody with half a football brain would agree that Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Kyler Murray, and Deshaun Watson should not be making more than Mahomes. Such is the nature of the ever-inflating quarterback market, and the Chiefs may end up having to go with the flow.
But let's take a step back and consider what Florio is saying. He believes the Chiefs may be inclined to shell out millions to make Mahomes the highest-paid quarterback in the league again just because of…the optics?
With two rings and two MVPs in the last five years, the Chiefs QB is definitely not a "sucker," and he could probably care less about optics. No offense to Hurts or Jackson, but securing those bags means nothing without meaningful wins. Having the name plate of "The Highest-Paid Quarterback in the NFL" doesn't make a player any better than his peers on the field. It strokes the ego, sure, but it doesn't amount to anything more than the simple following statement: "I'm rich."
To that, Mahomes can say, "I've won."
Spending less money on Mahomes and more money to build championship-caliber rosters has been the Chiefs' game plan all along, a thriving, symbiotic relationship of shared values and goals.
Compared to other players' ugly contract standoffs within their organizations, there's no respect lost between Mahomes and the Chiefs, just the same burning desire to go out and win. At the end of the day, money can always get spent. But a dynasty? That lives on forever.
