Complete: Wilson signs record deal
Seahawks QB now highest-paid player at $35M per year
RENTON, Wash. — With one 15-second video clip sent on social media shortly after midnight and five simple words, Russell Wilson put to rest any questions about his longterm future.
No more speculation about Wilson wanting to play elsewhere. No more rumblings of a bigger market for Wilson to call home.
“Seattle, we have a deal,” Wilson said in the video early Tuesday morning.
They were words Seahawks fans had waited to hear since the team’s playoff loss to the Cowboys in January, though it had seemed increasingly unlikely as the days ticked away toward Wilson’s deadline to have a deal done by the end of the first day of offseason workouts.
But they did strike a deal, one that makes Wilson the highest-paid player in the NFL and gives the Seahawks the chance to build a competitive roster around its star quarterback.
“Russell’s goal and his hope was that he would continue his career with the Seahawks and continue to bring championships to this town,” Wilson’s agent Mark Rodgers said. “He believes there is still unfinished business and he is looking forward to pursuing that without having to worry about contracts and his future.”
Wilson’s four-year, $140 million extension puts him at the top of the NFL salary food chain for now. He has the highest yearly average salary at $35 million per season. He has the highest signing bonus ($65 million) and guaranteed money ($107 million) in league history.
And for good measure, Wilson also got the Seahawks to agree to a notrade clause.
The 30-year-old Wilson had set a midnight Monday deadline for a new deal. He wanted certainty about his contract before the team got into its offseason workout program, which began Monday.
Wilson’s per year average tops Aaron Rodgers’ average annual salary of $33.5 million as part of the $134 million extension he signed last year with the Packers.
A five-time Pro Bowl selection, Wilson is coming off arguably his best season. He threw for a careerhigh 35 TDs and matched his career low with seven interceptions. He attempted only 427 passes — his lowest total since his second season, when the Seahawks won the Super Bowl — but he had a career best 110.9 passer rating. He also ran only 67 times, a career low.