06-15-2022, 01:51 PM
Steeler Minkah Fitzpatrick has agreed to a 4-year extension worth $73.6 million or $18.4 per year with $36 million due at signing. We will have to see the actual breakdown for the real structure and yearly hit. This makes Fitzpatrick the highest-paid safety in the league.
Fitzpatrick was the Dolphins' #1 pick (11th)in 2018. Jessie Bates was a 2nd round pick (54th) of the Bengals in the same draft. Usually, you will see Fitzpatrick ranked higher than Bates. But, this is probably the best measure of what Bates is looking for salary-wise out of all the safety contracts we've seen recently. However, as we know, the hold-up with Bates seems to relate more to the guaranteed money and the upfront signing bonuses structure than the actual dollar amount The Bengals are very reluctant to pay really large upfront signing bonuses even if the total payout of a contract might end up being similar or in some cases larger than the sum total of the player's requested contract Players want guaranteed money. Bates has an agent who is willing and able to play hardball. So who wins...the rock or the hard place? Only time will tell.
Fitzpatrick was the Dolphins' #1 pick (11th)in 2018. Jessie Bates was a 2nd round pick (54th) of the Bengals in the same draft. Usually, you will see Fitzpatrick ranked higher than Bates. But, this is probably the best measure of what Bates is looking for salary-wise out of all the safety contracts we've seen recently. However, as we know, the hold-up with Bates seems to relate more to the guaranteed money and the upfront signing bonuses structure than the actual dollar amount The Bengals are very reluctant to pay really large upfront signing bonuses even if the total payout of a contract might end up being similar or in some cases larger than the sum total of the player's requested contract Players want guaranteed money. Bates has an agent who is willing and able to play hardball. So who wins...the rock or the hard place? Only time will tell.
Winning makes believers of us all
