Andrew Luck is the present and future for the Indianapolis Colts at quarterback, and owner Jim Irsay stuck to his word by signing his star quarterback to a long-term deal. The deal was announced by Irsay via Twitter on Wednesday.
$140 Million over 6 Years… Biggest Contract in NFL History… Congrats to #12!!!
— Jim Irsay (@JimIrsay) June 29, 2016
Normally, a deal for a player this well known and this historic in nature would be huge news. Yet, somehow no one was able to get the scoop on the deal before it was officially announced by Irsay himself.
It’s a contract that makes him richer than the likes of Aaron Rodgers (five-year, $110 million deal in 2013) and Russell Wilson (four-year, $87.5 million with $60 million in guaranteed money). According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Luck will rake in a guaranteed $87 million during this deal.
The actual details of the contract are still unknown, and thus the $87 million reported could be in case of injury or the actual total guaranteed at signing. If it is the latter, Luck really lucked out (pardon the pun), as that kind of cash just for signing is unheard of in the NFL.
What will be most interesting to see is how front-loaded or back-loaded the contract really is. Did Luck trade in potential long-term earnings for some security in a six-year deal or was this one that gave him the most money possible up front?
At six years and $140 million, the average works out to $24.7 million per season, and Luck could leave money on the table had he signed a year-to-year deal that tied him to the franchise tag number until 2019.
Either way, in the day of media scoops coming minutes or hours ahead of draft picks, let alone contract negotiations, it was a marvel to see the team actually scoop the media on a deal for a change.