Brad Holmes' philosophy as general manager of the Lions is simple: "We want to retain good players." He proved it as soon as he arrived by locking up Frank Ragnow with a four-year extension that made him the highest-paid center in the NFL. Holmes has also ponied up to keep internal free agents like Romeo Okwara, Tracy Walker and Alex Anzalone.
The Lions have a new wave of extension candidates on deck, headlined by the most important player on their roster: Jared Goff. While Goff is signed through 2024, the Lions could potentially save themselves some money by extending him ahead of schedule. When do they have to make that decision?
"We’ve all just been keeping open dialogue from the very start," Holmes said Thursday on 97.1 The Ticket. "We’ve been very transparent both with Jared and his camp on things. We’ll keep it in house, but we’re going to do the right thing for the franchise and that’s where we’ll go."
Goff, 28, is coming off arguably the best season of his career and has re-entered the conversation of the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL. He has cap hits of about $31 million the next two seasons. The market rate suggests he could make close to $50 million per season on his next deal, maybe even more if he puts together another strong season or two. Hence the Lions' potential interest in getting a deal done before that.
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The club also has a decision to make on Pro Bowl guard Jonah Jackson. The 26-year-old is entering his contract season and has said he'd like to spend his entire career in Detroit. Jackson said in June that talks with the Lions had yet to really begin, but an extension is certainly on Holmes' radar. The going rate for high-end guards is between $15 and $20 million per year.
"We know there's a business side of it, but it’s easy to identify who those core players are and those guys who are going to be staples in our franchise," Holmes said. "Those are discussions we’ve talked about and we’re preparing for. Guys like Jonah Jackson, we’ve had discussions about that."
And Holmes said similar discussions are coming on Penei Sewell and Amon-Ra St. Brown, two pillars of his first draft class in Detroit. St. Brown's contract is up after 2024, while Sewell has a fifth-year option that will take him through 2025.
"There's going to be a lot of decisions that we make, but we’re going to do the best we can," said Holmes.
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