Jalen Hurts, Eagles agree on contract to make him the highest-paid player in NFL history

No drama here: the massive contract extension that everyone expected Jalen Hurts to sign this offseason is COMPLETE. The Philadelphia Eagles officially announced they’ve locked up their franchise quarterback through the 2028 season.

The five-year deal is worth $255 million, according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport. The agreement also includes “$179.3 million in guarantees” and a no-trade clause. Hurts is the first player in Eagles franchise history to earn such a NTC, per multiple reporters.

It’s pretty wild that Hurts went from being 1) not totally solidified as the Eagles’ long-term answer under center around this time last year to 2) being the highest-paid player in NFL history. But it’s incredibly deserved, as we previously wrote:

REVIEW: In last year’s version of this article, the theme was “Jalen Hurts cannot be the Eagles’ Plan A at quarterback.” And he wasn’t. The team had serious interest in trading for Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson. To the Eagles’ benefit, neither QB was eager to play in Philly. And so instead of making a move to acquire another passer, Howie Roseman focused his efforts on supporting his current quarterback. The approach clearly paid off. Hurts was awesome in 2022. He defied precedent and improved beyond realistic expectation. Hurts proved capable of thriving with his passing ability in addition to being able to do damage with his legs. Hurts was the betting favorite to win NFL MVP right before suffering a shoulder injury that caused him to miss two games later in the season. Hurts easily would’ve won Super Bowl MVP had the Eagles been able to beat the Kansas City Chiefs.

OUTLOOK: Hurts doesn’t turn 25 until August. Considering how he’s improved every year dating back to college, he hasn’t even necessarily hit his ceiling yet. That’s something for the Eagles to keep in mind as they decide to offer him a massive contract extension. At the risk of sounding reductive, Hurts is just a winner. He was a big reason the team went 16-2 in his 18 starts. Hurts offers everything you could really ask for from a franchise quarterback. He’s evolved into a high-level passer who doesn’t put the ball in harm’s way. His mobility adds a lot of value to the offense. He’s a great leader and his unique blend of confidence and composure seems to resonate with his teammates. All told, Hurts announced himself as an elite quarterback in 2022. The Eagles should give him a ton of money and trust that Hurts will have them in position to be annual championship contenders.

Hurts’ annual $51 million value puts him just above Aaron Rodgers’ $50.3 million as the league’s highest-paid quarterback. There was no team-friendly discount here. And that’s not a knock on Hurts; the realistic expectation should never have been for him to take less money than what the market dictated he’s worth. That’s just not something that really happens, outside of some shady stuff (read: paying under the table?) with Tom Brady when he was on the New England Patriots.

The Eagles potentially did find some savings by getting this deal done before the upcoming extensions for the likes of Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, and Justin Herbert. It’s possible those players will get even more money than Hurts. The market really only goes up each year so it should only be a matter of time until Hurts is no longer the highest-paid QB.

The last time the Eagles gave out a record-breaking contract obviously didn’t work out as they fully intended. Carson Wentz devolved from franchise QB status to being one of the worst starting players at his position in the entire NFL. It’s currently hard to envision Hurts following a similar path. But even if he unexpectedly does, Howie Roseman has demonstrated the ability to pivot out of a bad situation. Of course, the no-trade clause in this case could complicates matters.

Still, the Eagles shouldn’t be worrying if they made a mistake by paying Hurts a ton of money. Based on the information currently available to them, this was always the correct decision. They know Hurts has the ceiling of being a Super Bowl-winning quarterback.