Well, that Kevin Kolb deal looks a lot smarter now. They didn’t have a chance to resign Fitz without Kolb, but now they have Fitzgerald under contract for 8 years after giving him an 8 year 120 million dollar extension with 50 million in guarantees. That’s an absolutely huge deal. Given Andre Johnson got 7 years 63 million last offseason, I was expecting max 6 years 78 million for Fitz. The 50 million in guarantees is tied for 2^nd with Sam Bradford’s rookie contract in terms of most guaranteed money ever in a single contract. Peyton Manning’s fully guaranteed 5 year 90 million dollar deal is 1^st in that category.

The total amount, 120 million, is 2^nd behind Michael Vick’s 2005 extension (10 years 130 million) in terms of richest contracts. 15 million per year makes him the 4^th highest paid player in the league behind Brady, Manning (both at 18 million per year) and Michael Vick (16 million dollar franchise tag) and tied with Richard Seymour (15 million). Add in the fact that in order to get Fitz to reign, they had to give 63 million (21 million guaranteed) over 5 years to a largely unknown commodity in Kevin Kolb, as well as give up a 2^nd rounder and a 25-year-old starting cornerback to get Kolb from Philadelphia. Basically, Fitz was expensive. However, is he worth it?

I want to say no. I like to look at comparable players and what they are making. There really is no comparison among wide receivers. Andre Johnson got 7 years 63 million with 48 million guaranteed last offseason. Fitz got almost double that over just 1 more season. DeSean Jackson and Vincent Jackson, the next 2 receivers likely to get long term deals, must be thrilled, as should be Chris Johnson who suddenly has more leverage as he seeks a deal worth 39 million over the first 3 years. Calvin Johnson got 6 years 55.5 million with 27 million guaranteed as the 2^nd overall pick in 2007. Vincent Jackson is actually the highest paid receiver in the league at 11.4 million, but that’s because he’s the only receiver in the league who has been franchise tagged.

To get some perspective on Fitzgerald’s deal, we have to look at the deals of franchise quarterback type players. Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, and Philip Rivers all came out in 2004 with Fitz and all 4 have gotten deals similar to what Fitz got. Ben Roethlisberger got 8 years 102 million with 33.2 million guaranteed. Philip Rivers got 7 years 98 million with 38.2 million guaranteed. Eli Manning got 7 years 107.9 million with 35 million guaranteed. So the question becomes, is Fitz worth as much to his team as those 3 are too their teams? I have to say no. The Cardinals won 5 games last year. I know Fitz had no help, but I couldn’t see the Giants, Steelers or Chargers ever going 5-11 or worse as long their starting quarterback was healthy, no matter how bad their supporting cast was. Given that, the Cardinals overpaid.

However, the Cardinals almost had to do this. Fitzgerald is the team. He might not be a quarterback, but no receiver is worth more to a team than Fitzgerald. He wants to be there. He’s a class act. He’s been underpaid for the past 3 years and even offered to take a pay cut if it meant the Cardinals could keep Anquan Boldin. He caught 90 passes for 1137 yards and 6 touchdowns last season with a steaming pile of crap at quarterback. They did give out a lot of money to Kolb and Fitzgerald, but did they have another choice? Trade for Orton, let Fitz walk, and go 4-12 forever? That was their other option. They overpaid, but it’s worth it.

Grade: B