Top receiver deals definitely aren't what they seem to be
Agents love to make contracts seem to be worth more than they are. Those who don't warp and twist reality are the rare exception.
The end result is that the numbers commonly circulated when it comes to the value of specific deals are much higher than they actually are.
While it's a dynamic that applies to every position, the receiver position currently has the most glaring examples of contracts which aren't what they seem to be — especially at the supposed top of the market.
Let's start with Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill. $30 million per year! False.
Beyond the new money/old money fiction that is commonly used to pump up contract value, Hill's contract has a phony-baloney final year that pays out $45 million. It deftly pushes the new-money average to $30 million.
The truth is that Hill's extension has a new-money average of $25 million per year. The more accurate truth is that, when he was traded to Miami, he signed a four-year deal worth $23.8 million per year.
And $23.8 million is a far cry from $30 million.
Next on the highest-paid receiver list is Davante Adams of the Raiders. $28 million per year! Also false.
His contract has a bogus back end of $72.5 million over two years, which deliberately drives up the average. His contract is, in reality, a three-year, $67.5 million deal. The real average is $22.5 million per year.
Then there's Rams receiver Cooper Kupp. His post-Super Bowl MVP contract paid him $26.7 million per year! Annnnnd false.
It's a five-year deal worth $21.97 million per year.
The list goes on and on. Eagles receiver A.J. Brown, $25 million per year? Nope. $20.8 million.
Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf, $24 million annually? More like $19 million.
49ers receiver Deebo Samuel, $23.85 million per year? Make that $18.9 million.
Commanders receiver Terry McLaurin, $23.2 million? Try $17.78 million.
The three newest deals, done in the last month, fall far closer to truthful and accurate on their face.
Colts receiver Michael Pittman traded in the franchise tag for a three-year, $70 million deal. That's a real $23.3 million average and a return to the open market by 2027.
Titans receiver Calvin Ridley signed for $92 million over four years. It's a solid $23 million per year. (The Titans can get out after two years, but Ridley will make $24 million per year through 2025.)
The best deal of them all might be the revised contract signed by Texans receiver Stefon Diggs. He'll get $22.5 million this year plus a ticket to the open market in 2025. None of the other receivers on this list are due to become free agents next year, although some of them (specifically Adams) could be cut before the new league year in March.
Keep these numbers in mind as the next wave of receivers jockey for their next contracts, from Justin Jefferson of the Vikings to Ja'Marr Chase of the Bengals to Tee Higgins of the Bengals (who is subject to the franchise tag) to Brandon Aiyuk of the 49ers and beyond.
The simple reality is that no receiver is currently making even $24 million per year when the contract is valued from the moment the contract is signed. Will some receivers soon be making more than that? Jefferson and Chase absolutely should.
