The floor continues to rise for the payday that the NFL's top pass rushers will earn on their next deals. The top defensive ends are virtually as coveted across the league as top quarterbacks, leaving the Detroit Lions with a difficult decision to make in the coming weeks.
The market for edge rushers reset again on Wednesday when the Las Vegas Raiders and Maxx Crosby agreed to a massive three-year extension. Crosby, 27, who had been the center of trade discussions dating back to early last year, isn't going anywhere soon after signing his record-breaking $106.5 million extension. He will earn $34.5 million annually with $91.5 million guaranteed. The cap number and the guaranteed money are all that matter these days.
NFL general managers are constantly manipulating the cap, but eventually, you can only kick the can so far down the road before things catch up to you. Look around the league this offseason and see all the high-priced players being released and players entering the final year of their current deal on organizations tight against the cap with little to no hope of an extension, permitted to seek a trade.
Should the Lions extend Aidan Hutchinson now or wait a year?
Hutchinson is entering his fourth NFL season. Since he was a first-round pick, the Detroit Lions have a team option to exercise, projected to be $20,862,000 in 2026 before he hits the open market. Of course, the Detroit Lions will prefer to get a deal done before the start of 2026, but I wonder if extending him a year sooner would be the wiser choice, given where the market is headed.
The market will continue to be reset and increase with the group of pass-rushers due to ink new deals. That list is headlined by Myles Garrett, T.J. Watt and Micah Parsons, and also includes Trey Hendrickson.
General manager Brad Holmes and the Detroit Lions have a franchise-altering decision to make. Again, sign Hutchinson now, despite coming off a serious injury last season, before the market continues to climb, or ride it out another year, knowing the end result will be spending more money down the road and allocating funds to try and bolster their roster this offseason and go all in for a Super Bowl run. Neither answer is necessarily wrong, but I'd prefer to see the Lions extend their star pass-rusher now.
The Detroit Lions have a plethora of high-end players who will be looking to cash in a year from now when they are eligible for an extension. That list includes Jahmyr Gibbs, Sam LaPorta, and Brian Branch. Getting a deal done early with Hutchinson will help Detroit's long-term cash flow. Brad Holmes will want to stagger these deals and respective cap hits.
What would a deal for Aidan Hutchinson look like?
Hutchinson, 24, had been among the favorites to win Defensive Player of the Year before suffering a broken leg totaled 7.5 sacks along with 17 quarterback hurries and a fumble forced in five games last season. Fans are concerned about how he will perform coming off a broken leg. This leg injury was a clean break; it was nothing like Alex Smith's or even Teddy Bridgewater's past injury. Hutchinson's rehab is going well; he's working out and sprinting and is on track to begin the 2025 season healthy.
Detroit's top defender will certainly command every bit of the deal Crosby just signed and more. Again, the next in line usually sees a slight bump. If a deal is completed this spring or summer, Hutchinson will likely see $100+ million in guaranteed money, depending on how long the agreement is, perhaps $150 million if it's a five-year deal. I'd expect his cap number to come in around $37 million. If the Lions elect to wait until next year, that number will probably climb north of $40 million annually.