Report: Former Georgia QB Matthew Stafford set to become highest-paid player in NFL history
By Adam Spencer
Published:
After months of negotiations, the Detroit Lions have finally signed QB Matthew Stafford to a lengthy contract extension.
The former Georgia star will now be the highest-paid player in NFL history, according to multiple reports.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Detroit was signing Stafford to a five-year contract, while Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press added that the annual value of the contract is expected to be around $27 million:
Lions and Matthew Stafford agreed to five-year contract expected to make him highest paid player in NFL history, a team source told ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 29, 2017
$27M APY for Stafford.
— Dave Birkett (@davebirkett) August 29, 2017
Obviously, the quarterback position is important in football, but Stafford hasn’t accomplished as much as some of the NFL’s other top quarterbacks.
Still, he’s a talented signal caller and quarterback salaries are probably only going to rise in the coming years, so in three years, we may look back at this deal and say the Lions got a good bargain.
Last season, Stafford threw for 4,327 yards and 24 touchdowns, and has thrown for 30,303 yards and 187 touchdowns in his eight seasons with the Lions.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
