After months of uncertainty, San Francisco 49ers star Deebo Samuel got the extension he had been looking for. On Sunday evening, the 26-year-old agreed to a three-year, $71.55 million deal that can reach $73.5 million and includes $58.1 million guaranteed. He was just the latest player to cash in on the exploding wide receiver market, as nine of the 10 highest-paid receivers signed their deals this offseason.
AJ Brown was one of the receivers to receive a visit from the Brink’s truck this summer as he signed a four-year, $100 million contract with the Philadelphia Eagles. However, he was unable to come to an agreement with the team that drafted him to the Tennessee Titans and was traded on the opening night of the 2022 NFL Draft before he could receive the money he wanted.
From the 2019 draft class, Brown and Samuel were two of four wideouts cashed this offseason; the others were DK Metcalf of the Seattle Seahawks and Terry McLaurin of the Washington Commanders. Brown realized that he was the only one of the four that needed to be traded to get paid; something he wanted everyone else to realize as well. Hours after the news of Samuel’s extension, he tweeted this:
“Basically all 4 of us had the same contract and I’m the only one that got traded…yeah still think it was me. Anywho Go Birds #CarryOn.”
While the guaranteed money and years differ in every deal, Brown is very close to correct when it comes to average money per year. In terms of AAV, Brown is the No. 5 highest-paid wide receiver, Metcalf is tied for No. 6, Samuel is No. 8 and McLaurin is No. 9, per Over The Cap.
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Brown has long maintained that it wasn’t his choice to leave the Titans. The night he was traded, he even took to Twitter to say goodbye to Tennessee while adding “THIS WASN’T MY FAULT” before deleting the message.
It’s curious why Brown and the Titans couldn’t meet in the middle in a stretch. Brown told ESPN Tennessee that he couldn’t make an offer worth $20 million a year. However, ESPN’s Dianna Russini reported that the Titans’ offer was more than that. Although Brown said he wanted to stay in Nashville, Russini reported that Brown actually requested a trade and was asking the Titans for close to $80 million in guaranteed money. That number was also reported by ESPN’s Turron Davenport and SI’s John Glennon. Brown’s new deal with the Eagles includes $57 million guaranteed.
Overall, it appeared that the Titans, Brown’s representatives and Brown himself were not on the same page in the negotiations. It probably won’t be the last time Brown boos his former team. In fact, the Titans and Eagles face off this year on December 4th.