Joe Burrow is now eligible to be given a long-term extension that could see him become one of the highest paid players in the NFL.
Earlier this off-season, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts briefly became the highest-paid player in NFL history, before the Baltimore Ravens gave an even bigger deal to Lamar Jackson.
Like Burrow, Hurts had come from the 2020 draft class - being the fourth quarterback drafted behind Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert.
And while Hurts put in an incredible season last year, he struggled in his first two years as a starter. Burrow, meanwhile, has looked to be one one of the best quarterbacks in the league since the beginning of his second season.
With many believing him to be the second best quarterback behind Patrick Mahomes, Burrow would be fully deserving of a contract that would surpass the amount that both Hurts and Jackson received. However, it appears that Burrow might be willing to go the Tom Brady route in his contract negotiations.
Burrow told reporters: "I'm involved. That's in the works. That's not really something that I like to play out in the media. Just the way I think they want to do business, I want to do business, we prefer to keep that between us.
"I'm pretty clear on what I want in the contract and what I think is best for myself and the team. So we're on the road to making that happen."
He added: "Whenever you have guys on the team that need to be paid, that's always on your mind. You want that to be a focal point, so we're working to make that happen."
Stating that Burrow has the team's best interests in mind and knowing that the team also will need to find salary cap space for his superstar receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins - it appears that Burrow could take less money in order for the team to continue to keep it's core.
That's the route that Brady went down throughout his storied career - never being close to being the highest-paid player in the league and saving cap space so the team could add star players around him.
And it's a tactic that worked pretty well for Brady - while obviously making hundreds of millions in his career, and winning seven Super Bowl's and always having a competitive roster.
Burrow has already been to one Super Bowl, losing to the Los Angeles Rams in 2022, and will likely be battling with Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and the loaded AFC for years to come.
