The full details for Jack Campbell’s extension with the Detroit Lions are out, and this is one of the most team-friendly deals we’ve seen, but there is a slight concern
Detroit Lions sign Jack Campbell to $81M contract that stands out as one of the most team-friendly deals in the NFL, with smart structure and flexibility, though one small detail could raise concern down the line.
The Detroit Lions signed their All-Pro linebacker Jack Campbell to a four-year extension worth $81 million last week, and right off the bat, it was a team-friendly deal just based on the fact that the Lions didn’t have to make him the highest-paid linebacker in the NFL.
Now that the full details of the deal are out via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, it looks even more team-friendly than before. Like, it’s crazy the Lions even got this done. Even if there are some slight concerns. Let’s talk about it.
- 4 void years
- $51.5 million guaranteed
- $8.612M signing bonus
- option bonuses of $11.89M and $18.845M
- 2027 base salary: $1.26M
- 2028 base salary: $1.305M
- 2029 base salary: $15.15M
- 2030 base salary: $2.75M
The Lions were able to keep the base salaries super low in all except one year
Right off the bat, there’s been a valid concern that the Lions drafting so well in 2023 and having to pay these guys either top of the market or near the top of the market deals could affect what they could do in free agency or with other players they need to extend. These low cap hits drastically help that.
They won’t have to do a bunch of work to try to get under the cap with this deal next year. This is another reason why not picking up that fifth-year option looks so good.
The deal is built to be restructured and extended later
We talked about this in our initial thoughts on the deal before everything came out. This was going to be an extension-friendly deal. Well, when you get to 2029, and there’s that $15 million cap hit, the Lions can work to restructure there and spread things out more.
You can tell by looking at how low the 2030 cap hit is that the Lios have no intentions of paying him that little if he turns out to still be elite around that time. He’ll be just 29 years old by then. So, not a player who is about to age out.
There is a way out if things go sideways
You, of course, hope that never has to happen, but like most Lions’ deals, the dead money is paid out in higher sums earlier so you can have those low cap hits. On top of that, there are the four void years that are there to help spread that guaranteed money out even more. This will give the Lions the chance to opt out after 2028 if things aren’t going well. That’s not likely to happen. At least you hope, right?
The one concern
It’s not even that big of a concern right now, but four void years is a lot. Stack that on top of the void years, they have four Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Aidan Hutchinson, Kerby Joseph, and more, and you can get yourself into a real dead cap pickle down the road if you’re not careful.
So far, the Lions have been doing things right, but you keep kicking the can down the road on these deals, and eventually the bill is going to come due, and you have to pay the bill. It almost feels like the Lions are financing these guys right now, and while credit cards are fun, again, the bill comes due at some point. As long as they keep doing things right, they’ll be fine.
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