Beckham deal sets price high for Mack

Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack’s holdout entered its 32nd day Monday, and there’s little indication from either his camp, or the Raiders, that things will change any time soon.

But while the Raiders and Mack were not seriously talking about a contract extension, his price likely increased.

Odell Beckham’s new five-year, $95 million deal — agreed to Monday — has reset the market not only for wide receivers, but for Mack and his holdout analog, Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

The backbone of Beckham’s new deal reportedly features $65 million in total available guarantees, the third-highest figure in the NFL (behind Matt Ryan and Kirk Cousins). Those guaranteed money numbers are always a bit wonky, but Beckham’s reported annual salary will make him the second-highest paid nonquarterback behind Von Miller.

So what does that mean for Mack (and Donald)?

It means that the bar has been raised. The consensus belief in the NFL is that an elite pass rusher is worth more than an elite pass catcher, so if Beckham is getting $65 million guaranteed, the Raiders better be ready to offer a higher number — something more than $75 million — to get Mack to sign a new deal.

That’s was his fair market value before, but there’s less room for interpretation now.

Guaranteed money is and always has been the hangup in the Mack contract negotiations — if you can call them that — because that’s the real commitment in an NFL deal. Mack is currently under contract for the 2018 season — due to make $13.8 million on his fifth-year rookie deal option — but he and his agent’s goal is to negotiate a long-term contract extension as soon as possible. After all, there’s a ton of risk playing football and the Raiders have near complete control over negotiations, as they can franchise tag Mack in 2019 (and beyond), when his contract expires.

In a normal situation, finding the right annual value and guaranteed money for a nonquarterback is tough — Donald has held out for two straight preseasons now — but the Raiders’ situation, of course, is anything but normal. The Raiders’ tight finances have brought into question if owner Mark Davis is liquid enough to put the guaranteed money for a new Mack contract in escrow — a question I don’t think any other owner in the NFL would face — and Jon Gruden’s unilateral power in Alameda, history of offensive favoritism, and track record of hardline contract negotiations only further complicate an already complicated matter.

Still, there’s been an expectation that if Donald signs a new deal with the Rams in the coming days, the Raiders and Mack will use that contract as a blueprint, make some tweaks, and swiftly agree to a new deal. And while that absolutely could happen, at the moment, there are more signs pointing to the impasse

continuing, even if Donald signs.

When asked about the holdout Monday, Gruden offered some kind words for one of the NFL’s best players, which will no doubt be used by apologists as evidence that the Raiders’ $100 million man isn’t a key part of the deadlock.

“(We’re missing) his playmaking, his leadership, his presence. Great players, like Mack, have all of those things going for them. They make people around them better. They make offenses account for you. If you’re going to account for a Khalil Mack, you probably have to double team the guy and someone else is not going to have to deal with that. So, there’s a lot of things that a great player brings to your football team. Hopefully, that’s sometime soon,” Gruden said. “I don’t want to put any timetable on it. This has obviously been a long a process that has been grueling for both parties and fans and me personally. We’re just hoping we can get him in here.”

But actions speak louder than words, and Gruden and the Raiders’ actions — or lack thereof — give every indication that, at the moment, they’re not fully committed to making Mack the highest-paid defensive end in football, a title he unquestionably deserves. It’s simple: there wouldn’t be so much trade buzz and people with the team wouldn’t be pushing the notion that the defense can still be pretty good without Mack this season if the Raiders were 100 percent committed to giving Mack a fair-market deal. It sure seems as if Gruden (don’t forget who calls the shots) and company would rather figure out a contract extension after the season, if at all.

And the same time, Mack has millions and millions of reasons to continue using the strongest (and perhaps only) negotiating chip he has: his holdout.

Which side breaks first?

Beats me. Both parties seem in this thing for the long run.

But perhaps the new Beckham deal can help Raiders and Mack come to an agreement. After all, OBJ’s contract is another step towards shattering the notion that there is “quarterback money” and then there’s everyone else’s money, prorated by their position’s perceived importance. No, Beckham’s deal shows that in the new NFL, there’s one position that automatically elicits a premium — quarterback — but premium players can transcend a positional hierarchy to land big-money deals.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s are still positional considerations that come into play with contract negotiations — and it should have never been an issue for Mack, who plays a valued position — but the caste system of the not-todistant-pass is dissolving in real time.

Beckham is a premium player — there’s no doubt about that. He was paid like one Monday.

Donald is a premium player, too. Hell, he might be the best player in the NFL. Signs point to him getting his money soon.

And Mack is unquestionably a premium player as well — Gruden admitted as much on Monday.

So while there may be concerns about giving “quarterback money” to a defensive end in Alameda, the trend is pretty clear and the market parameters have tightened. There’s not much wiggle room to be had in a good-faith negotiation anymore.

Mack wants to be a Raider. He also wants a new deal compensatory with his impact and skill. And right now, he’s exerting his full leverage to make that happen, so everything that goes down — or doesn’t — in the coming days and weeks will answer the big question that remains: Do the Raiders want Mack?