The Detroit Lions locked up one of their cornerstone players on a long-term deal this offseason, as the team signed safety Kerby Joseph to a four-year extension worth $86 million with $36 million guaranteed.
Joseph is coming off a career year in 2024, as he snagged a league-leading nine interceptions and earned first-team All-Pro honors. The 24-year-old is contractual tied to Detroit until 2030.
His $86 million extension makes Joseph the highest-paid player at his position. However, ESPN’s Dan Graziano believes Joseph’s contract is the most team-friendly safety contract in the entire sport.
Here is Graziano’s detailed reasoning on why Joseph’s deal could help the Lions in the future:
Joseph received a $10.011 million signing bonus and a fully guaranteed $1.61 million in 2025, a fully guaranteed $11.5 million in 2026 and a fully guaranteed $1.26 million in 2027. It’s always good to get any fully guaranteed money in the third year, so we’re not sneezing at that. But overall, Joseph’s deal seems to fall short of other players at his position who’ve signed recently. Camryn Bynum’s free agent deal with the Colts this offseason, for example, includes an $18 million signing bonus and $26 million in full guarantees.
If Joseph sticks around, he stands to make $18.5 million in 2027, $21 million in 2028 and $26 million in 2029. But those years are a long way off, and the only guarantees they include are that $1.26 million in 2027. If the Lions want to, they can get out of this deal after the 2026 season having paid Joseph a total of $24.381 million. And Joseph’s deal should be quite helpful for the Lions, whose list of extension-eligible players over the next calendar year and a half includes Aidan Hutchinson, Jameson Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs, Sam LaPorta, Jack Campbell and Brian Branch.
Though Joseph’s contract seems like a major investment, there isn’t much guaranteed money involved in the immediate future, and the deal will be a bargain as soon as next year if Joseph continues to play at a high level.
Obviously, the superstar defensive back will likely seek another contract when his guaranteed money runs out in 2027. However, the Lions don’t have to worry about that right now, and Joseph’s team-friendly contract allows them to keep their core together for hopeful Super Bowl runs in the future.
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