08 September 2023 , 10:06
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Joe Burrow's eye-watering contract extension with the Cincinnati Bengals will see the quarterback earn the highest yearly salary in NFL history.
Burrow has been integral to the Bengals' success since being drafted in 2020. Despite suffering a knee injury in his rookie year, the 26-year-old soon made up for lost time after helping his team reach the Super Bowl in the 2021 campaign and the AFC Championship final a year later.
And Burrow's input to the team's success has been rewarded ahead of the new campaign, after finally agreeing a five-year contract extension worth £236 million ($275m) according to ESPN.
This will see the quarterback earn an average of £47 million, a salary that writes him into the NFL record books. Many within the Bengals setup will believe the record wage packet is more than deserved for Burrow, who has revolutionised the franchise on the field since joining three years ago.
Just one year before his move, the Bengals earned the unwanted title of the NFL's worst team after winning just twice throughout the 2019 campaign, matching the franchise's worst-performing season. Since then, the Cincinnati setup have become one of the league's top teams, with the influence of Burrow clear to see.
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The quarterback was not the only man in his position to sign a new lucrative deal, with Los Angeles Chargers star Justin Herberts recently penning a deal worth $42 million ($52.5m) per year, making him the NFL's highest yearly paid player. Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Baltimore Ravens' Lamar Jackson also took the title before Burrow agreed his deal.
Joe Burrow will earn $47 million a year (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)Earlier this week, the 2020 No. 1 draft pick committed his future to the Bengals. "This is where I want to be," Burrow said. "This is where I want to be my whole career. We're working toward making that happen. You've seen what the front office has done and what Zac [Taylor] has done in their time here. I'm a small part of that. I'm excited to be a part of that."
Burrow's preparation for the upcoming season have been far from ideal, after the 26-year-old star suffered a calf strain in training earlier this summer. Over six weeks on from sustaining the problem the quarterback has provided an update on fitness, and it appears to be good news for Bengals fans.
Keen to start in his team's season-opener against the Cleveland Browns, he commented: " I’m in a good spot. Yeah, I’m ready to go. We’re gonna see how these next couple of days play out because you never know with these things. But I’m expecting to play, and like I said we’ll see how these next couple of days go."