UPDATE: The Lions and Matthew Stafford made the deal official Wednesday morning.
It’s official! @Staff_9 @tomlewand #Lions pic.twitter.com/TLpdQA0px3
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) July 10, 2013
Stafford on the deal: ‘I want to help the team out if I can in cap space. I want good players around me’.
The Lions are ready to make another commitment in terms of one of their young pieces.
Tuesday, the Lions and QB Matthew Stafford agreed on a three-year contract extension worth and estimated $53 million dollars with $41.5 million of that guaranteed. What this means is the 25-year old Stafford will finish out the contract when he’s 29 setting himself up for one last mega deal prior to turning 30. Of course that all depends on how he plays over the course of the next few years… but ultimately it still works out best for the Stafford camp who will still see a nice return in the guaranteed money.
But it’s not all bad for the Lions either…
First whether you think the Lions over paid for Stafford or not market value probably dictates him signing for what he did given the number of years in the deal. Not to mention it’s essentially $18 million dollars less than a franchise tag and you’re eliminating the risk or dabbing back into the draft pool wondering if your first or second round pick is going to make the transition to the NFL. Let’s face it everyone, the Andrew Luck’s, RGIII’s and in a sense Russell Wilson’s (even though I’m not completely sold on him) don’t happen all that often. You’re more than likely gonna draft a Blaine Gabbert type rather than a guy that’s going to lead you to the playoffs. Or you can go into the free agent market, spend big bucks on an aging super star like Peyton Manning who has a bad neck and not many more years left of actually playing in the League in which case you’ll find yourself right back in the position of rolling the dice on a draft pick or getting pigeonholed into settling on Ryan Fitzpatrick or Cincinnati’s sloppy seconds in Carson Palmer.
Matthew Stafford isn’t the best QB in the league but he also isn’t the worst. Plus he’s not being paid as if he’s the best, he’s an above average guy that still has plenty of upside and potential. It’s up to him now whether or not he’s going to take that next step within the next few years to become one of the NFL’s elite.