A day after we wondered if the Green Bay Packers would meet receiver Jordy Nelson’s $10 million per season asking price, they more or less did.
The Packers signed Nelson to a new four-year deal worth $39 million. That includes $14.2 million guaranteed and an $11.5 million signing bonus.
The $9.76 million average also makes him one of the top-paid receivers in the league. He currently ranks eighth on that list, behind Calvin Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, Mike Wallace, Dwayne Bowe, Vincent Jackson, Percy Harvin and Brandon Marshall.
The deal is also a big improvement over the contract extension Nelson signed in 2011, which paid him an average of $4.37 million. Nelson has outperformed that deal, turning in two seasons of 1,200-plus yards since signing it.
Nelson is currently 29, so the contract will take him through what we would assume would be his prime seasons.
Although they made Nelson’s deal a priority, this is somewhat of a departure for the Packers. They refused to pay Greg Jennings big money when he became a free agent. The deal he signed with the Vikings is worth less annually than Nelson’s deal. Jennings averages $9 million per season, although he did get one more year on his contract, which brings the total value to $45 million.
The Packers didn’t offer James Jones anything when he became a free agent this year. He signed a three-year, $10 million deal with Oakland.
Now the Packers focus needs to turn to Randall Cobb. He’s also in the final year of his contract.
As for Jordy, not bad for a funny-looking kid from Kansas.