As the NFL Salary cap consistently goes up, so will NFL contracts. Over the next two years you will see records fall at every position. It’s just the nature of the NFL. Since the offseason is agonizingly long, each week I will profile a different position to tell you who is the next man up for the Biggest NFL Contract. This week: Guard and Center.
Quarterback
The Next Biggest NFL Contract Series
EDGE
Offensive Tackle
Defensive Tackle
Wide Receiver
Cornerback
Guard and Center
Safety: July 29
Running Back: August 5
Linebacker: August 12
Tight End: August 19
Special Teams: August 26
These two positions shouldn’t be together, but Tyler Linderbaum changed all that when he signed his 3/$81m contract with the Raiders and essentially merged Centers with Guards financially.
AAV – Tyler Linderbaum – $27m per year
To show just how much Linderbaum blew up the market, the previous record holder at center was Creed Humphrey at $18m per year. That’s a 50% increase!!! Imagine if Devon Witherspoon saw the contract of Trent McDuffie ($31m) and said he wanted $46m. Crazy. As for guards, Dallas extended Tyler Smith a year ago at $24m per season. Clearly Linderbaum used Smith as his salary comp, not Humphrey.
Total Value – Chris Lindstrom – 5/$102.5m
Lindstrom signed his contract back in 2023 and it’s still on top because who signs 5 year contracts? It’s especially misleading because he only had $48m of that guaranteed. Robert Hunt is the only other interior lineman to get $100m, but he was over 5 years as well. Tyler Smith is the 4 year record holder at $96m, just ahead of the 4/$94m deal signed shortly before that by the Chiefs and Trey Smith. As for non-Linderbaum centers, Creed Humphrey had received $72m over 4 years. Linderbaum’s $81m over 3 years blows that out of the water.
Total Guarantee – Tyler Linderbaum – $81m
Maybe the craziest part about Linderbaum’s contract is that every dollar is guaranteed. As a free agent addition, this is especially nuts because there is no fudging the numbers. It’s not like other contracts where previous salary is guaranteed and added into the reported number. Let’s take 2nd place Tyler Smith for example. When the Cowboys gave him $78.9m guaranteed, this included the $24m he was already set to make from his previous contract. His new money guarantee was only around $55m. That still would have been good enough for 3rd place on this list behind Robert Hunt of the Panthers when he signed a $63m free agent contract.
Who’s Next
It’s Quenton Nelson, plain and simple. Nelson has been in the league for 8 years and has been one of the top guards in the league for all of those 8 years. His last 1st Team All-Pro was 5 years ago now, but he was 2nd Team in 3 of those years. He is now in the final year of his 4/$80m contract signed back in 2022. At 30 years old, he will likely break the bank for interior offensive linemen any day now. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Linderbaum deal is what is holding him up.
Nelson’s time atop the list might be short lived though. Remember when I mentioned how Chris Lindstrom didn’t get much guaranteed? Well, there isn’t any guaranteed money left. He’s a year younger than Nelson and has been 2nd Team All-Pro 4 straight years. Holding him back is that Atlanta has no idea what it’s doing right now.
Wait, if those two were 2nd Team, who was 1st Team? That would be Quinn Minerez of the Broncos and Joe Thuney of the Bears. While Minerez is only 27 and Thuney is 33, both are in the last guaranteed years of their contract extensions. If Nelson and Lindstrom re-up this year, expect those deals to be springboards in terms of AAV for Thuney and everything for Minerez.
This is where we usually look to the draft to see who is next to get paid, but all of the deserving candidates from the 2022 Draft have already been extended. The 2023 and 2024 Drafts are low on deserving candidates with only Peter Skoronski (Titans 2023) and Steve Avila (Rams 2024) in the conversation. Neither are in the echelon of the vets above though.
As for centers, I don’t know if any team is going to value a center the way the Raiders valued Linderbaum. Take Aaron Brewer for example who just had a great season but resigned with the Miami Dolphins for 3/$52.5m at 28 years old. Creed Humphrey may have an argument considering he is a 2x First Team All Pro and his contract is out of guaranteed money following this season.
Contract Terms
The agents for Nelson and Lindstrom have to be thanking Linderbaum for jolting their market almost out of nowhere. Before, they may have been looking at 4 year deals just over $100m, but now $27m per season is the floor. Both have to be looking at $30m per year deals which would put them right in the neighborhood of the highest paid Tackles (though that market is set for a major boost as well). 4/$120m would not be crazy for either of them.
After they get their deals, Minerez should be looking to extend his rookie deal while he is at the very top of his game. Three straight 1st Team All-Pros would mean he can name his price.
As for Humphrey, he is going to put the Chiefs in a bad spot due to his talent exceeding Linderbaum but the contract being insane. In theory his next deal should be in the 4/$120m ballpark, I just can’t imagine KC doing that. Instead, look for him to go for a 4/$100m deal with heavy guarantees that works for both sides. That’s where the market should be, even if it is not where it is.
Contracts: Spotrac
Philly Front Office 
Leave a comment