Contracts in the NFL are all connected.
The raise one player gets is influenced by the raise the guy that just signed got.
That's what makes Micah Parsons' ongoing, contentious negotiations with the Dallas Cowboys so important to the Detroit Lions.
They won't say it out loud, of course, but the Lions know that the numbers Parsons ends up signing for will impact the kind of deal they can get done with Aidan Hutchinson.
Detroit's star pass rusher will be eligible to sign a contract extension after this season.
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Lions GM Brad Holmes told reporters this week that the discussions have begun with Hutchinson's representation.
“We have had dialogue that has started and so we’ll just kind of see where it goes,” Holmes said, via the Detroit Free Press. “But in terms of the level of importance, yeah, that has not changed. Aidan’s very important.”
T.J. Watt currently holds the edge rusher record with a $41 million per year annual average value.
Parsons is expected to exceed that eventually, whether with Dallas or elsewhere.
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Hutchinson may not match Parsons, but it's safe to figure he'll get the second-biggest deal for a pass rusher behind Parsons.
He had 9.5 sacks as a rookie, then 11.5 in 2023. In 2024, Hutchinson played in just five games before a season-ending leg injury, but he still had 7.5 sacks, which led the Lions for the entire season.
Earlier this offseason, Hutchinson said he wanted to be "hands off" in contract talks.
One way or the other, though, he's going to earn a huge payday.
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