Like any other position group, quarterback contracts tend to reset the market as they are signed. For Russell Wilson, his recent extension may end up looking like a steal in 2023. On Thursday, the Cincinnati Bengals and Joe Burrow agreed to a deal that makes Burrow the highest-paid player in NFL history. His contract carries an average annual value of $55 million, which is insane.
And given that there may not be another QB to sign a richer extension in the near future, Burrow may hold this honor as the highest-paid NFL player for a while. Is it possible that because of these QB contracts that have been agreed to recently, we could be talking about Russell Wilson's contract being a steal in 2023?
I think it's possible. With Burrow's contract factored in, let's take a look at where Wilson's pact ranks among QB contracts in the NFL. Wilson's average annual value of $48.5 million ranks 5th in the NFL among QBs, behind Burrow, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, and Jalen Hurts. The value of his deal ranks 7th in the NFL behind Patrick Mahomes, Burrow, Herbert, Jackson, Josh Allen, and Hurts.
And the practical guarantees of Wilson's contract rank 6th in the NFL. For the most part, we can say that Russell Wilson's contract, as a whole, is just about the 6th highest in the NFL among quarterbacks. Well, depending on how the season goes, we could be talking about this contract being a total steal for the Denver Broncos.
If Russell Wilson is at his best, he is easily one of the five best quarterbacks in the NFL. His 2018 through 2020 seasons was the best stretch of his career. During this stretch, his Seattle Seahawks went 33-15 in the regular season, which is nearly a 70% winning percentage. Wilson himself threw for 11,770 yards, 106 touchdowns, 25 interceptions, earned a passer rating of 107.2, and averaged a solid 245 yards per game.
This three-year stretch over a 17-game season came out to 4,169 yards, 38 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. Seattle also won double-digit games each of these seasons. Let's just say for a second that Russell Wilson had this exact stat line in 2023 as mentioned above; where would you rank him among QBs in the NFL?
Surely, he'd be near the very top, right? He'd likely lead the league or come close to it in touchdown passes, and he'd probably rank top 10 in passing yards. During this stretch, Wilson also added over 1,200 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns. Even though Russell Wilson had a down year in 2022, and even though many think that he's over the hump, there's always a possibility that the QB returns to this 2018-2020 version, and if he does, we'll be talking about how much of a steal his contract is.