Ex-Vikings GM predicts $172.5m Justin Jefferson deal to 'get done soon'
Justin Jefferson is probably going to be extremely rich in the very near future.
Former Minnesota Vikings general manager Jeff Diamond is predicting the 24-year-old superstar wide receiver will sign a five-year contract extension wroth $172.5 million, including a $50 million signing bonus and a $125 million of his contract guaranteed.
Diamond believes Jefferson's camp is aiming to make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league, not only in annual average value, but also in guaranteed money.
San Francisco defensive end Nick Bosa's deal with the 49ers pays him an annual average value of $34 million, which is currently the richest non-QB deal in the league. Bosa also received a $50 million signing bonus and $122.5 million guaranteed.
"Expect Jefferson’s deal to include a $50 million signing bonus to match Bosa and $125 million guaranteed to exceed him," Diamond wrote for The 33rd Team.
A five-year deal worth $172.5 million would give Jefferson an annual average value of $34.5 million, exceeding Bosa by a mere $500,000 per year.
Diamond, who worked for the Vikings from 1976 to 1998, believes the deal with Jefferson will "get done soon."
"There’s a good chance it will happen before free agency opens on March 13, giving the Minnesota Vikings salary cap savings off his 2024 cap hit of $19.743 million," Diamond added.
The former GM also believes the new deal will save Minnesota around $10.2 million on Jefferson's 2024 cap hit, which could help free up money to re-sign quarterback Kirk Cousin and edge rusher Danielle Hunter.
He expects at least $45 million a year to re-sign Cousins and about $25 million annually to ink Hunter to an extension.
Future of the Vikings, Part 5: Wide receivers and tight ends
Title: Bring Me The Sports co-owner, editor Email: joe@bringmethenews.com Twitter: @JoeBMTN Education: Southwest Minnesota State University Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota Expertise: All things Minnesota sports Nelson has covered Minnesota sports for two decades, starting his media career in sports radio. He worked at small market Minnesota stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before joining one of the nation's highest-rated sports stations, KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. There, he was the producer of the top-rated mid-morning sports show with Minnesota Vikings announcer Paul Allen. His radio experience helped blossom a career as a sports writer, joining Minneapolis-based Bring Me The News in 2011. Nelson and Adam Uren became co-owners of Bring Me The News in 2018 and have since more than tripled the site's traffic and launched Bring Me The Sports in cooperation with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation umbrella. Nelson has covered the Super Bowl and numerous training camps, NFL combines, the MLB All-Star Game and Minnesota playoff games, in addition to the day-to-day happenings on and off the field of play. Nelson also has extensive knowledge of non-sports subjects, including news and weather. He works closely with Bring Me The News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard to produce a bevy of weather and climate information for Minnesota readers. Nelson helped launch and manage the Bring Me The News Radio Network, which provided more than 50 radio stations around Minnesota with daily news, sports and weather reports from 2011-17.