Getty Drew Bledsoe
On Monday, the Kansas City Chiefs and their superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes agreed to a 10-year contract extension that elongates his commitment to the team for 12 years and is worth more than $500 million. It seems almost unreal, but if there are any players in any sport who is worth that much money, Mahomes, and the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James are the guys.
Believe it or not, the New England Patriots once believed in a young quarterback so much that they also signed him to a 10-year-deal. The year was 2001, so the money looked a lot different, but at the time, this contract had a few others like it in sports.
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The New England Patriots Signed Drew Bledsoe to a 10-Year Deal
The recipient of that deal was former No. 1 overall pick, Drew Bledsoe. The deal was supposed to “virtually guarantee he will spend his entire career with the Patriots, and it was the richest contract in NFL history at the time. It was worth a total of $103 million. Well, as you well know, a guy named Tom Brady was drafted in 2000, led the Patriots to a Super Bowl championship as a rookie, and ultimately took Bledsoe’s job while evolving into the greatest of all time.
How Bledsoe’s Fortunes Changed in New England
Bledsoe got injured during the 2001 season after this earth-changing, but legal hit by the New York Jets’ Mo Lewis.
Bledsoe stayed down on the field for several minutes. Ultimately, he got to his feet but had to be replaced by Brady. Bledsoe played in just two games during the regular season that year. Even after he was healthy enough to play late in the season, Bill Belichick elected to stay with Brady. However, in the postseason, Brady went down with an injury and Bledsoe led the team to a win in the AFC Championship game over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Belichick had a decision to make heading into the Super Bowl against the St. Louis Rams, and he went back to Brady. The Patriots then traded Bledsoe, who was 30 at the time, and his large contract to the AFC East rival Buffalo Bills in April 2002 for a 2003 first-round pick. The Patriots ultimately flipped this pick, which was originally No. 14, into the No. 13 selection in which they drafted Ty Warren, who earned two Super Bowl rings with New England.
As cold as ice, and blunt as the force of that tackle from Lewis, Belichick stated:
“We all knew what the situation was: A football team can have only one starting quarterback. In the end, it can only be one guy. When you put it all together, this is probably best.”
It’s probably safe to say, barring some unforeseen disaster, Mahomes’ deal will turn out a little better for the Chiefs than Bledsoe’s did for the Patriots.
Bledsoe is Doing Fine After Football
Bledsoe played five more years in the NFL after being traded to the Bills, three with Buffalo, and the final two with the Dallas Cowboys. As you can see from some of his recent pictures on Instagram, the former Patriot seems to be doing pretty well.
After all, $103 million is still $103 million.
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