[Note by JasonB, 03/05/12 9:48 AM EST ] Stevie Johnson has officially signed. No word on the terms yet, but this should be a big step in setting DeSean Jackson's price.
[Note by JasonB, 03/05/12 9:53 AM EST ] Stevie Johnson signed a five-year, $36.25 million deal that includes $19.5 million gtd and over $24 million in deal's first three years. - Just over $7 mil per year. Sounds good, get it done boys.
As we noted earlier, at this point in the NFL calender we would normally have seen a few players re-upping with their teams ahead of free agency. However, with free agency pushed back about 10 days this season, that process seems to be getting underway late.
We've said ad nauseum that Stevie Johnson would set a good baseline for a long term deal with DeSean Jackson and now Adam Schefter is reporting that he and the Bills are 24 hours away from a new five year deal. No word on the terms of the deal, but you can be sure Drew Rosenhaus and the Eagles will know them.
Speaking of Rosenhaus clients due for free agency, the market may also have started to be set for Evan Mathis. The Buccaneers have agreed to a new deal with OL Jeremy Zuttah. Zuttah is younger than Mathis, but Evan is the better player. In all likelihood, his deal will fall somewhere in between what a guy like Zuttah got and what a guy like Carl Nicks gets.
So while there's no news on the contract front for these guys, at least we're starting to see some movement in the market.