Aaron Curry today agreed terms with the Seahawks on a 6-year $60m contract, with $34m in guarantees. He reportedly participated in Saturday afternoon training camp, after missing the first week whilst terms were discussed.The obvious talking point is the size of the contract. The $34m in guarantees dwarfs what Chris Long received from the Rams last year as the second overall pick ($29m) and Darren McFadden as the fourth overall pick ($26m). It beats what Tyson Jackson reportedly got third overall ($31m) and Jason Smith second overall ($33m).
It smashes what quarterback Mark Sanchez ($28m) received in guarantees fifth overall and comes close to what Matt Ryan earned from the Falcons last year ($34.75m). It even beats what last year's number one pick Jake Long received from the Dolphins ($30m).
Nobody has confirmed the size of the contract, but it certainly appears Team Curry won this battle of negotiations. It's a huge investment at the linebacker position for the Seahawks, who if nothing else must surely own the most expensive linebacker corps in the NFL.
What do you think of the contract? Let me know in the comments section below or email rob@seahawksdraftblog.com
5 comments:
I didn't realize how much his guarentee really was until I saw the statistics you just provided. While I'll admit it may not logically make the most sense to pay a linebacker this much money, I'd be lying if I said I'm not thrilled the deal is done. Also, speaking from simply a fan's point of view, I'm glad he's getting as much money as he can and ready to help us win.
Rob, keep in mind this is a 6 year contract. Most of the contracts you are comparing Curry's to are 5 year. You have to pro-rate (divide by 6, or 5) to get the average. When you pro-rate, you will find that Curry's bonus is less than Jackson's and totally in line with the other comparable contracts. This was the classic win-win. Curry gets a market-slotted contract with the numbers right where they should be viz Sanchez and Jackson, and the Seahawks get the extra 6th year, which is a big budgetary benefit.
Here is the comparison, with the totals pro-rated on a yearly basis:
Stafford: 6 yrs @ $72 mil (12/yr); guaranteed $42 mil (7/yr)
Smith: 5 @ $62m (12.3); $33m (6.6)
Jackson: 5 @ $57m (11.4); $31m (6.2)
Curry: 6 @ $60m (10); $34m (5.7)
Sanchez: 5 @ $60m (12); $28m (5.6)
Therefore, the Curry contract is slotted into the market at a reasonable value with solid dollars for Curry and six years for the Seahawks.
Great point Anonymous. At first when I heard the contract (well, to be honest at first I was just glad the guy was in camp) I thought why the hell did it take so long if the contract was so rich, but by breaking it down from a 5 to 6 year deal from anonymous I can see its pretty much in the line of where the 4th pick should be this year in the draft. The difference is that the hawks have him for 6 yrs. instead of 5 like a lot of the other picks. If he is who we think he is then that is a good thing. The only concern that I have that someone from another blog brought up is if this contract will hurt our cap later on down the road. I would hate to see us hindered from getting better through the draft, or FA, because we are too tied up with Currys big money deal. I guess I should let the people that make the big bucks like Ruskell worry about that, and I just worry about the Hawks kicking ass and taking names. When it is all said and done, I am so stoked to see all our guys in camp, and hope they all stay healthy (knock on wood). GO HAWKS!!!
It's a huge win for the Seahawks that it's a 6 year contract, as it spreads out the guaranteed money, bringing it in line with the other picks slot wise, as pointed out, and locking Curry in at "todays outrageous dollars" rather than "5 years from now outrageous dollars". In other words, despite the backloading, the deal will look cheap in 5 years, and he will still be under contract.
Also, as we are all aware, most players do not see the last part of their contracts in their current form, but end up re-structuring later to minimize cap hits, especially if they like their team and think lowering the per year cap hit can benefit them by helping the team win.
It's a big contract to be sure, but seems to be much more of a win-win for both sides than a total win for the Curry camp.
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