The Tennessee Titans were considering placing the franchise tag on star EDGE rusher Harold Landry ahead of Tuesday afternoon’s deadline.
Once that did not happen, there seemed to be a good chance that the former Boston College star would hit the NFL free-agent market next week.
This is not going to happen. Multiple media reports indicate that Landry has landed a five-year extension. According to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero, the deal is with $87.5 million with $52.5 million guaranteed.
This takes one of the top pass rushers off the market before free agency officially opens on March 17. It also enables Tennesseee to return one of its key components on defense.
Related: Top 200 NFL free agents of 2022
Harold Landry next huge extension after breakout campaign
A second-round pick of the Titans back in 2018, Landry was pretty good during his first three NFL seasons. That included the pass rusher tallying a combined 44 quarterback hits and 19 sacks.
However, Landry was much more consistent during what ended up being a contract year in 2021. The 25-year-old recorded 22 quarterback hits and a team-leading 12 sacks en route to earning his first ever Pro Bowl appearance. He also tallied 75 tackles and 14 tackles of loss.
Landy now becomes the ninth highest-paid EDGE rusher in the NFL. It’s a group led by T.J. Watt ($28 million) and Joey Bosa ($27 million).