Tyrann Mathieu might soon be the highest-paid safety in the league, according to Ian Rapoport, which is kind of funny since he’s more of a hybrid corner/safety.
Tyrann Mathieu is mostly a cornerback, but he’s about to be the highest-paid safety in the NFL
The Cardianls and Tyrann Mathieu are closing in on a deal that will make him the highest-paid safety in the NFL.
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
The Cardinals have gotten incredible value from the Honey Badger since drafting him in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He might have been a first-round pick if not for getting booted from LSU’s football team in 2012, a year after he was a Heisman finalist. His rookie deal paid him $3,052,500 for the first four years of his career. Now, he’ll be looking at a deal that should pay him more than $10 million per year, if that’s the yardstick the Cardinals are using to make him the highest-paid safety. (If it’s guaranteed money, he’ll wind up north of Devin McCourty’s $28 million, and if it’s going by total value, he should top Jairus Byrd’s $54 million deal with the Saints).
He’s played 68 percent of his snaps as a slot corner, 24 percent at strong safety and eight percent as a free safety, according to Pro Football Focus. Making him the highest-paid safety saves the Cardinals some money compared to making him the highest-paid cornerback; the average annual value for the four highest-paid cornerbacks starts at $14 million.
It’s a risk for the Cardinals. Mathieu has torn his ACL twice since being drafted, but he’s done everything the Cardinals have asked of him on and off the field.
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TITANS DUMP METTENBERGER
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