The wide receiver market has reset in 2022

The NFL offseason just keeps getting better and better for wide receivers from across the league.

First, it was Davante Adams and Tyreek Hill. Now it’s Stefon Diggs. The league’s top wide receivers have been busy getting big pay days, as Diggs becomes the latest wide receiver to receiver a new and improved contract this offseason.

The Buffalo Bills have tied down the two-time Pro Bowler to a six year deal worth over $124m and with it exemplified just how expensive the top receivers are becoming.

Adams and Hill became the two highest paid receivers in history with moves away in March, while the Bills have gone all out to secure the future of Diggs.

This emphasis being placed on the wide receiver market shows just how valuable teams are viewing the position going into the 2022 season.

An elite receiver is now seen as the difference between failure and success. The stakes have never been higher.

Free agency is big business for wide receivers

We’re talking about some of the very best players in the NFL getting huge contracts, but it has been free agency where the wide receiver market really changed.

In March, the Jacksonville Jaguars sent shockwaves across the league by luring Christian Kirk to a four-year deal in North Florida which could be worth as much as $84m.

Kirk, generally a third choice for the Arizona Cardinals in recent years, has never achieved a 1,000 receiving yard season. Yet suddenly, he’s become one of the best paid WRs in the NFL.

This isn’t to say Kirk is necessarily a bad player. In fact, he was the Cardinals’ receiving leader in 2021 and if it wasn’t for injuries in his early NFL years, his production would have been a lot more impressive.

But his new contract makes him better paid than the likes of Mike Evans and Cooper Kupp. When someone like Kirk is paid like an elite cornerstone of a franchise, that changes things for the outlook of his peers.

Allen Robinson, Russel Gage and Marquez Valdes-Scantling also got big pay days in 2022. The three combined for less than 1,600 receiving yards last season.

The likes of Diggs, Adams and Hill must be very grateful of teams prepared to spend heavy in free agency.

Who is next in line for a big payday?

It looks likely that the contract for Diggs won’t be the last major extension we see in 2022.

There will be other names in line for a big contract of their own very soon. Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel are among the players who could get similar deals.

McLaurin, for example, has hit back-to-back 1,000 campaigns for the Washington Commanders. But he’s not quite in the same league as Diggs just yet in terms of production.

Despite this, expect the former third-rounder to get a considerable sum if he does get a new deal, purely as a result of the current market.

Washington will want to keep their number one receiver and will probably have to pay $20m+ a year to keep him.

The same, if not more, is expected for Deebo Samuel.

Samuel knows that these high-priced deals will result in more money in his own bank when he gets his own extension. For a player who has transformed into such a dynamic offensive weapon in recent years, he can expect anything from $20m to $25m annually.

Then we’ve got the potential for other blockbuster receiver trades. DK Metcalf’s future looks uncertain, and he could be tempted by a huge contract away from Seattle.

Whatever happens, another receiver should end up with a huge new deal before the new season.

The bubble will burst, eventually

This explosion of the wide receiver market represents just how unprepared the NFL was for such a shift.

Just a year ago, Amari Cooper was the only receiver to make more than $20m. Now, there are five set to make over that amount in 2022.

The hot wide receiver market bubble will burst eventually. NFL salary caps haven’t kept pace with the significant pay increases.

Unless for significant future cap relief, there could be teams torn between deciding to pay an elite QB or WR very soon.

That’s arguably what happened in Green Bay this summer. Adams’ trade coincided with Aaron Rodgers becoming the highest paid player in NFL history.

Patrick Mahomes’ mega deal in Kansas City also probably contributed to the Hill trade.

The wide receiver market is certainly becoming inflated, especially with so many exciting young receivers having come through in recent years on cheap rookie deals.

Justin Jefferson broke the NFL’s rookie receiving years record in 2020, which was immediately beaten by Ja’Marr Chase just a year later. In fact, 11 of the NFL’s top 25 receivers in 2021 were still on rookie contracts.

As a result, we could start to see teams churn out players in the position to get the best value.

Both the Packers and the Chiefs will likely sign a wideout in the first round of the NFL draft later in April, despite recently trading their superstar receivers. It’s all an attempt to save money.

This is similar to what has happened with running backs, as teams are now happy to let players walk because of an upcoming payday and replacing them with a cheaper rookie option.

Regardless of who teams choose to pay, the best receivers deserve their money.

That price is increasing, but quality at the position is so crucial. Teams need special players to ensure they are successful.

If a team hasn’t got an elite receiver, they need to find a way to get one.