What Patrick Mahomes' contract would be if Chiefs had to re-sign quarterback now
By John Buhler
As other NFL teams are paying their franchise quarterbacks a fortune to go out there and not get to Super Bowls, the Kansas City Chiefs are falling out of their chairs laughing. That is because they have the best quarterback in the game in Patrick Mahomes. The three-time Super Bowl champion is under contract through the 2031 NFL season at $45 million in average annual value. This is so unbelievable.
Surely, at some point, Mahomes and his representation will restructure his contract to make him not so grossly underpaid. Mahomes will never play for another franchise. He is already a lock to make the Pro Football. Hall of Fame, and he doesn't even turn 30 until 2025. Still, you have to take care of the man who takes care of you. Just look at all the lesser quarterbacks who are making more in 2024.
The Miami Dolphins foolishly broke the bank for Tua Tagovailoa who is one more head injury away from being completely out of the league. While the Green Bay Packers may have something real exciting in Jordan Love, he has started one season's worth of games. Regardless, the new benchmark for franchise quarterbacks is well over $50 million in AAV, even higher than $55 million.
With the Dallas Cowboys needing to pay Dak Prescott, let's try to figure out a new deal for Mahomes.
What a new Patrick Mahomes deal would look like for Kansas City Chiefs
Let it be known that a new deal is not coming anytime soon for the best player in the sport. The Chiefs wisely got out ahead of this and extended Mahomes through his age-36 season out of Texas Tech. He will become a billionaire by simply playing quarterback for the Chiefs as he approaches 40. Then again, I am not sure he is going to be exactly like Tom Brady and always be willing to take less.
I believe Prescott should be the next quarterback to reset the market. He is entering the final year of his four-year deal at $40 million AAV. He is a better quarterback than Tagovailoa and a more proven one that what we have seen out of Love. If Love got $55 million in AAV, then Prescott should be getting somewhere in the $60 million to even $65 million range. That is where it starts for Mahomes.
Mahomes should be getting at least $65 million in terms of AAV on a new deal, probably approaching or eclipsing even $70 million in AAV. Again, this is all hypothetical. Mahomes is probably not going to restructure or get a new deal for at least a few more years. The good news is the next quarterback still on his rookie contract that is slated to get an extension would probably have to be C.J. Stroud.
Mahomes could reset the quarterback market every time someone gets paid, but that's not the point.