What a Brock Purdy contract extension might look like
By Peter Panacy
The 49ers don't have to worry about a Brock Purdy contract extension for another year, but it promises to be quite a lucrative deal.
One of the reasons the San Francisco 49ers have been able to lucratively spend on a number of positions over the last year-plus is because of the miniscule amount of money currently dished out to their starting quarterback, Brock Purdy.
The 2023 MVP candidate counted for a mere $889,252 against the Niners' salary cap last year, and he'll count just a shade over $1 million against the cap in 2024, according to Spotrac.
That makes Purdy the 49th highest-paid player on San Francisco's offseason roster, meaning he just barely squeaks into the top-51 rule for contracts this time of year.
Purdy isn't eligible for a contract extension yet. Those conversations can't take place until after his third year on his current rookie deal. However, assuming the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft continues his upward trajectory, one can safely assume the Niners will be dishing out quite a hefty extension for him in a year's time.
“I think it’s a good problem when your quarterback is one of your highest-paid guys on your team and in the league,” 49ers CEO Jed York said of Purdy's eventual contract situation, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “So there’s a lot of planning that goes into it.”
San Francisco has already started budgeting money for the extension.
What would a Purdy extension look like, though?
Predicting what Brock Purdy gets from 49ers in a contract extension
There's a lot of incomplete data with regard to determining the nature of Purdy's pending extension in 2025. Obviously, he has a full year to play this upcoming season, and that'll play a large role in whatever contract figures he's offered. Should Purdy's play decline, or he suffers some sort of elongated injury, the dollar amount would descrease significantly.
That said, Purdy will enter 2024 with a full offseason program to prepare, which he didn't have the benefit of doing a year ago because of the elbow injury suffered in the 2023 NFC Championship game that kept him inactive until training camp.
Armed with a nearly identical core of offensive talent around him, there's little reason to assume Purdy won't deliver in a similar fashion as he did last season.
The fact Purdy missed out on last year's MVP award is a financial benefit to the 49ers, yes. But he'll still be projected as one of the league's top-paid quarterbacks, perhaps falling in the top five of signal-caller contracts.
Currently, the top-five quarterbacks (in terms of contract amounts) are as follows:
Years | Total Value | Annual Average | Guaranteed at Signing | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs) | 10 | $450 million | $45 million | $63.08 million |
Joe Burrow (Bengals) | 5 | $275 million | $55 million | $146.5 million |
Justin Herbert (Chargers) | 5 | $262.5 million | $52.5 million | $133.74 million |
Lamar Jackson (Ravens) | 5 | $260 million | $52 million | $135 million |
Josh Allen (Bills) | 6 | $258 million | $43 million | $100.04 million |
Purdy, who just turned 24 years old, likely won't accept anything less than a five-year deal. And he'll certainly be seeking an annual average well above $40 million. Considering his teams have made the NFC Championship game twice in a row with him at the helm, including one Super Bowl appearance, he'll likely want more than postseason underachievers like Jackson and Allen, too.
That matters. Even if Jackson has two NFL MVP awards under his belt.
It's likely Purdy falls into a Burrow-like range, especially if he can squeeze the Niners for leverage after their failed attempt and investment in now-Dallas Cowboys quarterback Trey Lance, who was traded off prior to the 2023 season after two unsuccessful years as San Francisco's centerpiece.
As for a prediction, something in the realm of five years, $280 million (annual average of $56 million) would seem about right. It'd be a slightly bigger contract than Burrow, in terms of total potential value, while still looking up at the massive long-term deal the Kansas City Chiefs dished out to MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Now, the guaranteed money is often what matters most in player contracts. Purdy would want to cash in there, too, and it wouldn't be a shock if fully half of his potential earnings would be guaranteed.
That'd equate to $140 million guaranteed at signing.
Again, there are plenty of yet-to-be-determined factors at play here, and Purdy could possibly opt to take less money in order to keep the 49ers' talent level high over the next few seasons. Or he might regress in an "off year" following the team's Super Bowl loss last February.
Still, barring the unbelievable, Purdy will be cashing in once 2025 hits.
Read more from Niner Noise
feed