Irsay on Nelson Extension: 'Right Now We Aren't Doing Anything'

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay discusses the contract extension for All-Pro offensive lineman Quenton Nelson.

Indianapolis Colts offensive lineman Quenton Nelson is playing in the final year of his rookie contract. The Colts exercised Nelson's fifth-year option for the 2022 season, and he saw his compensation jump from $7.8 million in 2021 to $13.8 million in 2022 according to Spotrac.

Colts owner Jim Irsay was asked on Wednesday about the progress being made to re-sign Nelson, and Irsay didn't sound to worried about being able to strike a deal.

"Well, right now we aren’t doing anything," said Irsay. "I mean it’s a process that the talks go on. It’s always been the plan to get that done, and I see that getting done. I really do."

"It’s just a question of timing and moving towards an agreement, like always that favors both sides and is good for both sides. We’ve never had a problem there when you look at the history of the franchise with our outstanding players going into their second contracts whether it’s been Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison or whoever."

"So, I see that getting done."

The Colts would have the option of placing the franchise tag on Nelson after the season if they can't come to an agreement. The franchise tag takes the average of the five-highest paid players and pays that amount to the player in a one-year deal.

Offensive linemen are considered one position for franchise tag purposes, so teams don't typically like to use that option on interior linemen who tend to make considerably less than left tackles.

However, there's nothing typical about Nelson.

ESPN reported in May that Nelson could be in line to get left tackle money as his contract could "break the bank". 

The Colts would like to prioritize re-signing Nelson but know this will be costly. That's why this deal could take time. The guard market is very reasonable, with Jacksonville's Brandon Scherff being the highest paid at $16.5 million per year. But that might be part of the problem. Nelson, 26, is widely considered the NFL's best guard by a wide margin and could want closer to $20 million annually. I have heard the same sentiment from several veteran agents: Nelson will break the bank. While Nelson -- who has a career pass block win rate of 94.7% -- doesn't play left tackle, this might be a left tackle conversation based on money. -- Jeremy Fowler, ESPN

Re-signing Nelson is going to take big money and time. 

Irsay reiterated on Wednesday that he doesn't feel either will be a barrier to keeping Nelson a Colts player for a long time.