Russell Wilson thinks he's better than Cam Newton.
According to a tweet from Mike Garafolo from Fox Sports, the Seattle Seahawks quarterback rejected an offer similar to the five-year, $103 million contract Newton agreed to with the Carolina Panthers in early June.
Russell Wilson wants to be the NFL's highest-paid player
Newton's contract included $60 million in guaranteed money.
The news of Wilson's intent to become the NFL's highest player became public on Thursday. The current holder of that distinction is Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who signed a five-year, $110 million contract in 2013 with $54 million in guaranteed money.
Cam Newton deal sets the market for Russell Wilson?
While Wilson's rejection is significant, it is not surprising, nor alarming, according to Sporting News.
"These are simple negotiation tactics from both sides with Wilson arguing he should be the richest man in the sport, while the Seahawks' first offer is closer to that of a QB with far less success than Wilson, who has taken the franchise to back-to-back Super Bowls and won one of them," Sporting News reported.
"The two sides will likely meet somewhere in the middle between an Aaron Rodgers-esque mega-deal and that of Newton (five years, $103.8 million with $60 million guaranteed) - the latter a nice NFL quarterback, but one with just one playoff win and a sub-.500 record as a starter in four years."
ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com, meanwhile, suggested that the possibility of Wilson playing on another team in 2016 continues to grow.
"The possibility of the Seahawks opting not to pay a market-value deal and also opting not to use the exclusive franchise tag (which likely would result in a three-year payout to Wilson of more than $98 million) would leave the Seahawks with one choice: Apply the non-exclusive tag, assume the risk that someone else will sign him to an offer sheet reflecting a market-value deal, and either match the offer or accept two first-round picks as compensation from Wilson's new team," the report said.
"...At some point, though, the possibility of using the non-exclusive tag and harvesting a pair of first-round picks will become more distinct - especially if the two sides can't make real progress toward a long-term agreement."
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