The Kansas City Chiefs are making Patrick Mahomes the richest man in NFL history. The superstar quarterback is set to sign a 10-year deal.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Kansas City Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes are in agreement on the largest deal in NFL history. The deal will be 10 years long, and while the money isn’t known yet, it will make Mahomes the richest player ever.
Patrick Mahomes’ 10-year — 10-year! — contract extension that ties him to Kansas City through the 2031 season will be the richest contract in NFL history.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 6, 2020
Schefter is also reporting that the deal won’t kick in for another two seasons. Mahomes will play out the two years still on his rookie contract with the extension added on.
Patrick Mahomes had two years remaining on his contract, and he and the Chiefs are adding on 10 more, making it a a new 12-year contract in total.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 6, 2020
This is unusual, but it makes sense. The Chiefs are in a tight cap situation. Even without a Mahomes extension they only have about $6 million in cap space for 2020. Then, nobody knows what the cap will look like in 2021 due to COVID-19. This contract structure allows the Chiefs to protect themselves until the cap should be stabilized.
This move also puts the New York Jets squarely in the crosshairs. One of the reasons they had been able to get away with not paying Jamal Adams was that Mahomes hadn’t been paid yet. That excuse is now gone.
This also opens up a door for Adams to be traded. If Adams is willing to go to Kansas City without an extension, the Chiefs can now afford him. This deal also opens up the possibility of a Chris Jones trade.
Jones is currently on the franchise tag and looking for an extension. He’s even gone as far as saying he’ll sit out 2020 if he isn’t paid.
It would be hard for the Jets to do better in an Adams trade than Jones. He has 24.5 sacks in his last 29 games, making him second among all interior defensive linemen. He’s one of the elite pass rushers in the NFL.
With a Mahomes deal now out of the way, neither team has an excuse for not paying their disgruntled stars. Don’t be shocked if they decide to swap them.
