Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton seemed downright giddy when Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas signed their contract extensions earlier this offseason, and now we know why.
On Wednesday, Hilton and the Colts agreed to a five-year extension worth $65 million, according to various reports. The deal includes $39 million in guaranteed money and will add an additional five years onto the one year Hilton has remaining on his rookie contract.
Bryant and Thomas both signed five-year, $70 million contracts just before the franchise tag deadline expired last month. Both players received roughly $45 million guaranteed. Hilton immediately took to Twitter and indicated that he expected those deals to affect his market value. He was right — sort of.
The difference between Hilton’s deal and the contracts Bryant and Thomas signed is that Hilton has one year and $1.542 million remaining on his current contract. The new deal is really for $66.542 million over six years, which gives Hilton an average annual salary of roughly $11 million. Bryant and Thomas are making $14 million per season. Had Hilton not signed an extension, he would have played for $1.542 million in 2015. Bryant and Thomas, on the other hand, would have signed their franchise tenders and been paid nearly $15 million each this season.
At the end of the day, this is a win for Hilton. Very few people believe he is as much of an impact receiver as Bryant or Thomas, yet his contract includes just $6 million less in guaranteed money. The 25-year-old should be thrilled.
