Jordy Nelson signs extension.

[Willard]

Agree that getting Nelson re-upped was critical.

I don't think signing Nelson was critical. I am happy this happened (especially at $42.5M over 5 yrs), but I think many GMs would have save money for something else. Considering the Pack has the best QB in the game, an emerging 23-yr old WR playmaker, a decent #3 in Boykinhecatch, 3 new draft picks including a 2nd rounder, and a couple other holdover potentials--the Pack could have survived Jordy's departure following our upcoming Super Bowl victory. Rodgers is the main reason the Pack could have thrived even without Jordy. He makes these receivers better. Still, I am delighted Jordy got his kwan. Clearly TT does not want to feel the same regret Wolf felt by not surrounding his MVP QB with more talent at WR. In the last couple of years TT has offered $11M/yr (?) to Jennings, drafted a lot of WR talent, and now locked up Jordy. Rodgers must be ecstatic! It is a great move, but was not critical on my opinion.

[texaspackerbacker]

I'm reasonably happy about this. The only $14.2 million guaranteed is a good thing just in case he gets injured or fades in performance, and if he stays good, we have him for the rest of his effective career. I agree, signing him wasn't super critical, but it is a positive thing. As for Cobb, ditto on the not super critical. I see Cobb as less sturdy and more likely to fade in performance - as young as he is, I already see some slippage. Sign him if the price is right, but don't go overboard.

[pbmax]

WR meeting room chatter slightly less murky now.

Jason Wilde @jasonjwilde 5h
RT @SageRosenfels18: Nelson gets $10M a year. Rodgers told me 5 years ago, even with Driver, Jennings etc, that he was his favorite WR.

smh!

[pbmax]

Packer Report @PackerReport 7h
McCarthy informed by Thompson during middle of practice about Nelson extension.

[Fritz]

Well, that's good news for McC in the middle of the practice.

I wonder if Greg Jennings has any feelings about all this, or if he's happy to be trying to catch a few passes from CassWater this year?

I think the signing is good, in part because it also reinforces the idea that the team is fair with its own. There is a very slight psychological benefit for guys like Cobb and others coming up on second contracts. Very slight, but still it's good for morale.

[Bretsky]

good solid signing.

[Cheesehead Craig]

You just don't mess with one of the most prolific QB/WR combos in the league when they are in their prime. Good to see the Pack saw that.

[pbmax]

Nice story about how word filtered out to the team during practice.

http://www.espnwisconsin.com/common/page.php?feed=2&id=14681&is_corp=1

[gbgary]

great move for probably the most underrated wr in the league (by media types).

[Guiness]

Well, just like Nelson, this topic didn't garner a lot of attention, and was slipping down the front page in short order.

I think the Packers dealing with Nelson first was a tip of the cap to the veteran, and now it's time to move on to Cobb. Interesting article at nfl.com, pretty hard to take at face value

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000370205/article/randall-cobb-i-havent-done-enough-for-new-deal

[pbmax]

I think I nailed this one earlier this month.

Tom Silverstein @TomSilverstein 1h
New from JS: Nelson climbs to 9th on WR pay scale http://bit.ly/1tXomIj #packers

[Striker]

In exchange for a large first-year payout of $14.25 million, the Green Bay Packers will get Jordy Nelson for a palatable $7.68 million over the next three years as part of the contract extension the receiver signed over the weekend.

There's no best way to determine the value of an NFL player's contract, but among the most valuable are the amount of money totally guaranteed, as well as the amount the deal pays in the first two and three years. The later-year salaries are less important because players often don't get to them -- teams either cut them or ask them to take a pay reduction because the player has aged and isn't performing at the level he did when he signed the deal.

By those measures, Nelson will be well paid as far as money that's guaranteed explicitly or de facto, and for the first three years he'll make good but not top-end money. Nelson agreed to the deal presumably as a hedge against the risk of getting injured or seeing his performance diminish, and at age 29 he was willing to sacrifice some money over three years to get as much as he could this year.

According to a source with access to NFL salary information, Nelson's official guaranteed pay is his $11.5 million signing bonus. But he'd already made a $250,000 workout bonus and essentially is guaranteed his $2 million base salary because the Packers aren't going to cut him this year. So his real guarantee is $13.75 million. He can make another $500,000 this season in roster bonuses -- $31,250 for each game he's on the 46-man game-day roster.

So this year Nelson will make anywhere from $13.75 million to $14.25 million, which is the third-highest total of any receiver this season, behind only Miami's Mike Wallace ($15.05 million) and Chicago's Brandon Marshall ($15 million).

However, Nelson's base salary next season is only $1.3 million with the same weekly roster bonuses that will pay up to $500,000 plus a $500,000 workout bonus. So in the first two years Nelson will make $16.55 million. And in '16, his base salary is $5.5 million with the $500,000 workout bonus and up to $500,000 in weekly roster bonuses.

So he'll make $23.05 million in the first three years, or an average of $7.68 million.

By comparison, Marshall like Nelson had one year left on his contract when he signed an extension earlier this offseason. Marshall, who is 30, received a $7.5 million bonus and will make $15 million this year in salary and bonuses, or only slightly more than Nelson.

However, Marshall will make $7.7 million in salary and bonuses in '15, so in his first two years he'll make $22.7 million to Nelson's $16.55 million. And Marshall is scheduled to make $8.1 million in '16, so in his first three years, if he's still playing well enough at age 32 that the Bears don't cut him, he'll average $10.27 million.

Nelson's former teammate Greg Jennings last year had the leverage of free agency when he signed with Minnesota. Jennings received a $10 million bonus, $13 million in the first year and will make $18 million in the first two seasons. He's scheduled to make $9 million in '15, which makes for $27 million over the first three years, though by the start of the '16 season he'll be 33 and in danger of being released because of age and cost.

Nelson's contract in total is worth $42.55 million for five years, or an average of $8.51 million a year. The NFL Players Association only considers new money when calculating the worth of contract extensions, so it counts Nelson's deal as worth about $39 million in new money for four new years, or an average of $9.7 million a year. But Nelson received the bonus now, so his new contract in reality starts this year.

Nelson will be 32 in 2017, when his pay takes a major leap for the final two years of his deal. He's due to make $9.25 million ($8.25 million base salary, $500,000 workout bonus and up to $500,000 in per game roster bonuses). In 2018 he's due to make $10.25 million ($9.25 million base, $500,000 workout and up to $500,000 in per game roster bonuses).

Nelson will count $5.925 million on the Packers salary cap this season. His cap numbers the final four years are $4.6million in '15; $8.8 million in '16; $11.55 million in '17 and $12.55 million in '18.

Numbers look good.

[Guiness]

Numbers look good.

I'm a little surprised by the structure of the contract, it's not blatant, but there is some 'funny money' in the last 2 years. He might get them, but they are by no means guaranteed and it's entirely possible he does not. His '16 base is quite low, which I also find odd because it's a 'new' year. The line So he'll make $23.05 million in the first three years, or an average of $7.68 million. tells you he gave the Packers a heck of a discount.

[MadtownPacker]

Very happy to hear the White man finally got the respect he deserved!!