Lots of the early attention in free agency this year is going to the wide receivers, and with all the new contracts coming in during the first day of free agency, none stood taller than Calvin Johnson.
Johnson signed a monster of a deal – 7 years, $132 million dollars with $60 million guaranteed. It’s the richest wide receiver deal in NFL history, eclipsing Larry Fitzgerald’s $120 million deal, and based on Johnson’s recent performances, he is well worth it.
“Calvin’s one of those guys that, and we’ve said this about a few guys in our building now, that whatever you pay him is not enough,” Lions head coach Jim Schwartz said at the announcement.
“He’s truly a special player.”
Johnson led the league in receiving yards last season with 96 catches for 1,681 and was second only to Rob Gronkowski with 16 TDs (Gronk set an NFL record for tight ends with 17). That’s averaging over 100 yards and 1 TD per game, which is simply amazing. He also led the league with 32 catches of 20 yards or more.
Johnson is also only 26 years old and just hitting his prime, and he has great chemistry with Detroit’s quarterback, Matt Stafford.
In the last game of the season, Stafford and Johnson put that chemistry on display. Stafford joined the 5,000 yard club (with Dan Marino, Drew Brees and Tom Brady) in dramatic fashion as he threw for 520 yards and 5 TDs in the season finale, with Johnson catching 11 balls for 244 yards.
A week later, Johnson was just as spectacular in their playoff loss to the New Orleans Saints, where he caught 12 balls for 211 yards and 2 TDs.
With Johnson and Stafford locked down on the offense, the Lions seem to have great pieces that they can continue to build around.
Wide receivers have been moving faster this season than rumors about where Peyton Manning is going to play. Here’s a sampling of a few other deals that have gone down in the last 24+ hours:
The Bucs made a big splash signing former Chargers WR Vincent Jackson to a 5-year, $55.6 million deal.
The Chargers ran to fill the void caused by Jackson’s departure and signed WR Robert Meachem from the New Orleans Saints to a 4-year, $25.9 million contract. Although they lost one of the biggest free agents available, Meachem is a solid player who will help to pick up the slack.
There was a lot of speculation that Peyton Manning’s former receivers would be looking to see where Manning went, to potentially follow, but as he continues his tour, his comrades have been busy. Former Colts receiver Pierre Garcon signed a 5-year, $42.5 million deal with the Redskins. WR Reggie Wayne elected to stay with the Colts, and signed a 3-year deal worth a maximum of $17.5 million.
Speaking of receivers staying with the same team, DeSean Jackson surprised everyone by getting a multiyear contract from the Eagles. He was franchised tagged, and rumors that he might be gone after next season were swirling, but he signed a 5-year, $51 million to stay in Philadelphia.
In addition to Garcon, the Redskins signed 49ers receiver Josh Morgan to further upgrade their receiving corps. The 49ers were hoping to retain Morgan to play alongside Randy Moss, who they signed to a one year deal earlier this week. With Morgan gone, the 49ers are now one of three teams pursuing Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham, who is also talking with the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills.
And there’s still one more big name waiting for the phone to ring – Steelers WR Mike Wallace, who received a first round tender from the Steelers, is available to a team willing to part with a first round draft pick.
Stay tuned – it’s a quarterback / receiver league, and the battle for top notch wide receivers is going hot and heavy.
