Joe Burrow Contract Extension

Just before the season opener Joe Burrow casually signed the largest contract in NFL history. This deal was in the works for a while and the two sides finally came to an agreement. Burrow stated multiple times that he wanted a deal that worked for both sides, so I was a little surprised when seeing the total value, but nonetheless, Burrow is worth every penny. 

Terms of the Deal

Burrow signed a 5-year/$275M extension to keep him under contract through the 2029 season. He still has two years remaining on his rookie deal, so the total contract length is now 7 years. This brings his current contract total to $310M. Burrow's new AAV is $55M which is the highest in the league surpassing Justin Herbert ($52.5M). 

Guarantees

This deal includes $146.51M guaranteed at signing which consists of a $40M signing bonus, 2023 P5 salary ($1.01M), 2024 P5 salary ($10.714M), 2024 option bonus ($55M), 2025 P5 salary ($25.25M), 2025 option bonus ($10M), and a $4.5M roster bonus that was paid out as part of his last contract. 

On the 5th league day of 2025, Burrow’s 2026 P5 salary ($25.25M) and 2026 option bonus ($10M) become fully guaranteed.

On the 5th league day of 2026, $18.3M of his 2027 P5 salary becomes fully guaranteed. The entire $27.25M was injury guaranteed at signing. His remaining 2027 salary ($8.95M) and 2027 option bonus ($10M) become fully guaranteed on the 5th league day of 2027. Altogether, this contract contains $219.01M in guarantees.

Cap Breakdown

Because of the two years left on Burrow's rookie deal, his cap hit is relatively low for the 2023/2024 seasons. The extension officially kicks in for the 2025 season and so does Burrow's cap hit. The next four years' cap hits stay around the mid $40M to low $50M range. We could potentially see some movement with money to create space in the latter years of the deal. His 2029 cap hit won't stay at $68M as the Bengals will most likely extend Burrow or move money around beforehand. Three void years have been added to the contract for cap purposes. 

Cap Flow

- 2023: $19.51M
- 2024: $29.71M
- 2025: $46.25M
- 2026: $48.25M
- 2027: $52.25M
- 2028: $53.5M
- 2029: $68.53M

Cash Breakdown

Burrow's highest cash years will come in 2023 and 2024 due to the $40M signing bonus and massive $55M option bonus. 

Cash Flow

- 2023: $45.54M
- 2024: $65.71M
- 2025: $35.25M
- 2026: $35.25M
- 2027: $37.25M
- 2028: $40.5M
- 2029: $50.53M

Contract Table

Final Thoughts

Overall, the size of the deal may be a bit of a surprise to some, but this is what Burrow is worth. He has proven to be an elite talent who can get Cincinnati to where they want to be. The structure is fine, nothing out of the ordinary of what we usually see. You can assume restructures will be made at some point depending on how things go for the Bengals. The Bengals are still fine with the cap. It will be interesting to see the structure of Ja’marr Chase’s deal if they can come to an agreement.

Next Man Up

Tua Tagovailoa: Mike McDaniel has done a great job with Tua and the Dolphins are looking like a real Super Bowl Threat. If he continues to play at this level there is no doubt Miami will give him a large extension. While I don’t think it will be around Burrow/Herbert money, he should be in the top 5 highest-paid QBs list. My guess would be around the $45 - $50M AAV range.