Contract extensions sometimes fall under the radar. It's not that they don't make news. It's that they tend to be treated as a checkbox. Is the extension done, yes or no?
But there's a lot of middle ground. Should the extension have happened? And at what price? Because not every extension is a good decision.
So with NFL teams seemingly inking players to new long-term deals almost every day in training camp (most recently Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs agreeing to a three-year, $67.5 million extension Thursday with $51.5 million guaranteed), let's go through some of the most interesting deals and rank them from best to worst.
As always, I'm evaluating the decisions teams make, considering the player in question, the price and the rest of the team's roster, cap situation and time horizon to contention.
Jump to an extension: Bergeron | Carter | Flowers | Gibbs Olave | O'Neill | Robinson Taylor | Ward | Wright
1. Brian O'Neill, OT, Minnesota Vikings
Extension: Four years, $96 million
O'Neill has always performed very well and been consistent in pass block win rate. In fact, he finished in the 95th percentile or better for three straight seasons from 2022 to 2024 before dropping back to the 79th percentile in 2025. Conversely, his run block win rates weren't as strong until last season, when he popped into the 87th percentile among tackles.
At age 30 with only one year left on his contract, extending O'Neill made a ton of sense. That's true for two reasons: (A) offensive tackles can continue to play at a high level well into their 30s, and (B) right now contract costs for good tackles are relatively cheap. Losing O'Neill would really hurt the offense, replacing him would be difficult, and his extension costs only $24 million per year.
The structure of the deal is also favorable. It's a pretty salary-heavy contract with a smaller, fully guaranteed $11.2 million salary in 2027 and then no fully guaranteed salary after that, per OverTheCap.com. In other words, the Vikings bought themselves years of team control with limited downside. That's well worth it.