Eagles contract extension gets called best in the NFL

The day before the 2021 season began, the Eagles locked up Jordan Mailata on a four-year contract extension that is already looking like a bargain.

At least that’s what former NFL agent Joel Corry wrote in his 2021 Contract Awards for CBS Sports.

Corry handed out 2021 awards for Most and Least Valuable Acquisition, Offensive and Defensive Signing of the Year, Biggest Steal and others. But the Eagles get credit for the Best Contract Extension (for a team) in 2021.

As a reminder, Mailata’s new contract pays him $64 million over the next four seasons, through 2025.

Here’s what Corry said about the extension and why it was the best extension for a team this year:

“Without the extension, the Eagles would have been forced to designate Mailata as a franchise player or risk losing him in free agency. Since Mailata is just scratching the surface of his talent, he would have been in high demand on the open market. Mailata joining the $20 million per year offensive lineman club, which currently has three members, would have been a certainty. Left tackles Trent Williams, David Bakhtiari and Laremy Tunsil have deals with the 49ers, Packers and Texans averaging $23.01 million, $23 million and $22 million per year respectively. Becoming the NFL's highest paid offensive lineman, like Trent Brown did with the Raiders in 2019 free agency, wouldn't have been out of the question since Mailata doesn't turn 25 until the end of March.”

Mailata, who was a seventh-round pick back in 2018, had a base salary of just $850,000 in 2021 so this was really his first shot at making major money in the NFL. The former rugby player got over $40 million guaranteed and a $10 million signing bonus in his pocket immediately.

This is obviously a lot of money. But Corry’s point is that if Mailata was able to test the open market this offseason, he would have gotten even more. Way more.

Here’s a look at the top 10 highest-paid left tackles in the NFL in AVY and their ages in the 2022 season, via OverTheCap:

Trent Williams: $23 million (34)

David Bakhtiari: $23 million (31)

Laremy Tunsil: $22 million (28)

Ronnie Stanley: $19.75 million (28)

Kolton Miller: $18 million (27)

Garrett Bolles: $17 million (30)

Jordan Mailata: $16 million (25)

Taylor Lewan: $16 million (31)

Donovan Smith: $15.5 million (29)

Taylor Deker: $14.9 million (29)

By the time Mailata finishes his contract extension, he will still be under 30 and can get another mega deal.

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What might have helped the Eagles get this deal down as the fact that there are a bunch of big escalator opportunities in this contract if Mailata is named a Pro Bowler or an All-Pro (first or second team) in any of the next four seasons, according to a league source. Escalators are even better than bonuses for the player because it raises the base salary in subsequent years instead of a one-time thing. In 2022, the escalator amount for Pro Bowl or All-Pro is $1.6M, in 2023 it’s $3.2 million, in 2024 it’s $4.8 million and in 2025, it’s $6.4 million.

Mailata was not named to the Pro Bowl or All-Pro team in 2021, but clearly had that type of season. If he continues to play at that level, the Eagles will be happy paying out extra money.