Colts left guard Quenton Nelson signed a mammoth contract extension shortly before the 2022 season began. History could repeat itself four years later, but contract talks between the Colts and Nelson are currently “stagnant,” Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports.
Colts general manager Chris Ballard, who drafted Nelson sixth overall in 2018, expressed interest in reaching a second extension with the potential Hall of Famer in late July. Training camp had already gotten underway by then. Nelson’s preference was to sign before camp, per Fowler, who adds that talks between the two sides have not picked up in earnest. That could change, especially considering the Colts’ prior extension with Nelson did not come together until the eve of Week 1.
At the time Nelson inked his current contract, a four-year, $80MM pact, he became the first guard in the league averaging $20MM per annum. There are now six other guards making at least that much. The Titans’ Peter Skoronski became the new leader at the position when he landed a $25MM-per-year extension last month. Skoronski is nowhere near as accomplished as Nelson, however.
Since he came into the league out of Notre Dame eight years ago, Nelson has gone to the Pro Bowl every season and totaled three first- and second-team All-Pro selections apiece. Last season was the fourth straight 17-game campaign for the durable Nelson, who collected his latest second-team All-Pro nod. Nelson also earned an elite ranking at Pro Football Focus, which placed him fourth among 79 qualified guards.
There is little doubt that Nelson is once again in line to become the highest-paid guard in the league on another potential extension. The question is whether he will surpass all interior offensive linemen. At $27MM per season, Raiders center Tyler Linderbaum is atop the food chain on the three-year, $81MM payday he scored in free agency in March. Linderbaum’s record-setting accord is practically all guaranteed, and he is making a staggering $9MM more per year than the league’s second-highest-paid center.
Maybe the 30-year-old Nelson won’t do as well as Linderbaum, who is 26 and had several teams bidding on him. However, as PFR’s Sam Robinson explained in depth in a Trade Rumors Front Office piece in early July, Nelson has a legitimate case to join Linderbaum’s company. Otherwise, if there is no agreement between now and the start of free agency next March, Nelson could end up earning around $30MM in 2027 via the franchise tag.