Brandon Scherff’s lucrative contract details with Jaguars revealed

The Washington Commanders were never expected to be heavily involved in the first and second waves of free agency. Since Ron Rivera was hired in 2020, the team has been consistent in keeping a low-profile in the annual sweepstakes.

From the fans’ perspective, that meant sitting on the sidelines waiting for potential re-signings or departures.

On Monday, the first day of the legal tampering period, it was all about the latter, as Brandon Scherff inked an agreement with the Jaguars. Promising nose tackle Tim Settle also left for Buffalo, but let’s focus on Scherff.

After all, the five-time Pro Bowler’s exit will have a much greater impact on Washington in the immediate future. In typical Scherff fashion, the official terms of his contract weren’t revealed until late Monday night.

As expected, it’s a huge contract for Scherff: three years, $49.5 million with $30 million guaranteed and $33 million in the first two years. The deal also includes a $1 million bonus for each year he’s named to the Pro Bowl.

Former Commanders star Brandon Scherff’s contract details with the Jaguars have been revealed.

It definitely stings Scherff couldn’t net long-term financial security in Washington, but this pay day was a long time coming. In 2018, the Commanders exercised Scherff’s fifth-year option, which paid him $12.525 million that next season.

After failing to reach an agreement on an extension in consecutive offseasons, the former No. 5 overall pick was franchise tagged in both 2020 and 2021. Though the tag didn’t give Scherff any security beyond one season, the $15 million and $18 million salaries he pocketed on the franchise tag were fully guaranteed and made him the highest-earning guard in the league in 2021.

It not so surprising news, Scherff’s newly-minted $16.5 million salary is the average of his two franchise tags. He maintains his status as the highest-paid amongst his peers, a slight $500,000 more per year than Joe Thuney and Joel Bitonio.

For anyone curious, here are the highest-paid guards in the NFL.

• Brandon Scherff: $16.5 million
• Joe Thuney: $16 million
• Joel Bitonio: $16 million
• Wyatt Teller: $14.2 million
• Brandon Brooks: $14.087 million
• Zach Martin: $14 million

In terms of guaranteed money, Scherff’s $30 million ranks fourth at the position behind Thuney ($46.89 million), Martin’s $40 million and Adrus Peat’s $38.5 million. You can argue all day whether Scherff deserves to be the highest-paid guard on an annual basis, but it was always heading in this direction.

Having been tagged in consecutive years, Scherff wasn’t going to demand anything less than $15 million per year. Though he leaves behind a big hole at right guard, we’re completely fine with Washington letting him walk.

As vital as 30-year-old was to the team’s success, he’s missed a lot of time with injuries — hasn’t played a full regular season since his second year in 2016 — and signing him would’ve further depleted Washington’s cap room.

We just hope this is the last time the Commanders opt to franchise tag a player of value over trading them. As we learned with Kirk Cousins, the tag almost always leads to an eventual departure in free agency.

If they make the same mistake with Terry McLaurin, fans will likely start to turn on Rivera and the current regime, and you know what? We wouldn’t blame them.