2024-07-23 21:25:02
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Keep refreshing your phones, Green Bay Packers fans. The Jordan Love contract news reportedly could “break any minute.”
That is what Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported on Tuesday during a conversation with Chase Daniel (2:30 mark). She expects it “to get wrapped up this week” and also suggested he will become the highest-paid signal-caller in the league.
“I believe Jordan Love is going to be the highest-paid quarterback in football when this does wrap up,” Russini reported.
“I do believe that he’s going to beat out both Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow, right? So, you figure they are the highest paid quarterbacks right now, making around $55 million a year. It’s all about guaranteeing money, right? That is always going to be the topic of conversations when doing these deals in terms of the importance.
“And so, from what I was told, they are still trying to knock out the final language of this contract. But both sides have been very consistent that they feel good about it, and it should be done not later, but sooner.”
This comes after Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst told reporters Monday a deal is “close” and that Love is holding out until there is an agreement.
According to Spotrac, Burrow and Lawrence are the highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL on an average-annual value basis at $55 million. They check in ahead of Jared Goff ($53 million), Justin Herbert ($52.5 million) and Lamar Jackson ($52 million) in the top five.
While contracts typically work out that the most recent marquee name sets the bar and comes in slightly higher than the last deal, becoming the highest-paid player would still be quite the development for Love given his relative inexperience.
Green Bay selected him with a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft, which was a head-turning move at the time considering it still had an all-time great in Aaron Rodgers under center and seemingly needed other playmakers to get over the hump as a Super Bowl contender.
Love didn’t get his first chance to be a full-time starter until the 2023 season, and he took full advantage of it by completing 64.2 percent of his passes for 4,159 yards, 32 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while leading the Packers to the playoffs.
He also shined on the marquee stage and threw for three touchdowns and zero interceptions in a postseason victory over the Dallas Cowboys before a narrow loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the Divisional Round.
Considering Love is just 25 years old and the front office likely wants to avoid some of the drama that defined the end of Rodgers’ tenure with the team, it isn’t surprising a deal appears imminent.
Russini explained there are plenty of procedural steps to work through, adding “from what I was told, this is more just about the structure of the deal. Not so much the number that we’re discussing now, which I think it’s pretty safe to say that they’re going to pay him what the market dictates, which we know right now is above $55 million.”
