Commentary
Stafford could face letdown on draft day
Originally Published: March 30, 2009
By
Bill Barnwell | Football Outsiders
How could you end up with $22 million and still be grossly disappointed?
If you want to give it a shot, try being Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford on draft day.Stafford, the projected No. 1 overall pick in most mock drafts, would be in line for the biggest contract in the history of the NFL draft. Miami OT Jake Long signed a five-year, $57 million deal last year as the first pick and Stafford would expect to receive about 5 percent more than Long's pick just by virtue of the draft's yearly inflation, and when you consider that quarterbacks are often higher-paid in draft slots than other players, Stafford could see a contract beyond $60 million for five years.
However, if he falls, the descent could be steep. He could end up at No. 4 to the Seahawks and get a deal closer to $53 million. If he dropped all the way to San Francisco at No. 10, he'd likely see a deal in the range of $22 million, costing him about 65 percent of the money he'd have earned if the Lions took him with the first pick.
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Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) is a staff writer for Grantland.
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- Pats deal CB Hobbs to Philly
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- No surprise: Lions pick Stafford at No. 1
- Jets trade with Browns to get Sanchez
- Browns stockpile picks via trades
- Niners thrilled to get Crabtree at No. 10
DIVISION-BY-DIVISION ANALYSIS
TEAM-BY-TEAM, ROUND-BY-ROUND PICKS
- AFC East: Buffalo | Mia. | N.E. | NY Jets
- AFC North: Balt. | Cinc. | Cleve. | Pitt.
- AFC South: Hou. | Indy | Jax | Tenn.
- AFC West: Den. | K.C. | Oak. | S.D.
- NFC East: Dallas | NYG | Phila. | Wash.
- NFC North: Chi. | Det. | G.B. | Minnesota
- NFC South: Atl. | Car. | N.O. | Tampa
- NFC West: Ariz. | S.F. | St. Louis | Sea.
- Rounds: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7
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