Justin Herbert Becomes NFL's Highest Paid Player And He's Done It Under Tough Circumstances
And now Justin Herbert is the NFL's highest paid player. And, yes, highest paid quarterback.
Herbert, the No. 6 selection of the 2020 draft, on Tuesday afternoon agreed to a five-year contract extension worth $262.5 million, a source confirmed to OutKick.
The deal includes $133.7 million fully guaranteed.
The Chargers have confirmed the deal is done.
Justin Herbert Extension With Chargers A Whopper
Let that sink in.
Because that's over a quarter of a billion dollars.
It makes Herbert the NFL's highest paid player and quarterback on an annual average basis. Herbert will collect $52.5 million on an annual average basis.
Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, who signed a $260 million deal this offseason, was the previous highest-paid player at $52 million per season. Eagles QB Jalen Hurts, who signed an extension before Jackson, was the highest paid player before that at $51 million per season.
Quarterback Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals celebrates after rushing for a third quarter first down against the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Divisional Playoff game at Nissan Stadium on January 22, 2022 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Joe Burrow Extension With Bengals In Works
And get used to that sentence coming back around with a fill-in-the-blank space where the name goes. That's because in the coming weeks the Cincinnati Bengals and Joe Burrow may have need of it when they reset the market again.
The Bengals and their quarterback are working on a deal that will make him the highest paid quarterback in the NFL.
Yes, this has so far been the year of the big quarterback contract.
Herbert definitely deserves this money. No, he hasn't raised his team to Super Bowl heights as Hurts or Burrow have.
Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers passes during a game against the Miami Dolphins at SoFi Stadium on December 11, 2022 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Justin Herbert Taken Place Among Elite QBs
The truth is he's gotten the team in the playoffs only once in three seasons, that being last season. And the Chargers were bounced in the wild card round by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
But Herbert has definitely done his part.
How good is Herbert?
He has thrown for 14,089 yards and 95 touchdown passes in his first three seasons. He's joined the yearly passing leaders as a matter of routine. He is regularly at or near the top of the league in passing yards, fourth-quarter comebacks, interception percentage and even game-winning drives.
He's elite, people.
Herbert has done this under multiple offensive schemes as the Chargers have shuttled offensive coordinators and coaching staffs in and out, with another new coordinator coming this season.
And he's done this at the ripe age of 25.
One more thing about this deal. It did not come close to the contract Deshaun Watson signed with the Cleveland Browns in that it is not fully guaranteed.
Watson's deal, which is for $230 million and averaged $46 million per season, was fully guaranteed. And that full guarantee remains the gold standard for agents and players. And a headache for ownership and their teams.
A source said that was never a significant issue in the Herbert negotiations.