Giants make Eli Manning richest quarterback in NFL; Super Bowl MVP agrees to 7-year, $107M contract

ALBANY (e3media) - Eli Manning is about to become the highest-paid player in the NFL.

The Giants quarterback and former Super Bowl MVP has agreed to a new seven-year, $106.9 million contract that he is expected to sign later Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. Though it's not the largest deal in NFL history, the average of $15.27 million per year is a new NFL high.

That deal has been in the works since last year, as the Daily News first reported in January. Though it didn't quite hit the $120 million mark that NFL sources expected, it still makes Manning the eighth member of the $100 million Quarterback Club.

The deal is actually a six-year, $97.5 million extension which will keep him with the Giants through the 2015 season. It tops the $100 million barrier when you add in the $9.4 million he was due this season, which will apparently be included in the new deal.

According to one report, the deal will include $35 million in guaranteed money.

Tom Condon, Manning's agent, did not return an e-mail seeking comment. A Giants spokesman had no comment on the impending deal either.

Manning's new deal also makes him the highest-paid member of his family, trumping the $14 million-per-year average Peyton Manning has with his seven-year, $98 million deal with the Indianapolis Colts. That was the highest average for an NFL quarterback, and it was the highest in the NFL until the Oakland Raiders signed cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha to a deal this spring worth an average of $15 million per season.

Manning's new deal would eclipse that, too.

The Giants have known they were going to have to open the vault for Manning since Feb. 3, 2008, when he led them on that miraculous run to Super Bowl XLII. Add in four playoff appearances in five seasons - and all four seasons as a full-time starter - and the consensus in the organization was that he was easily worth the price.

The negotiations, however, got off to a rocky start.

According to one source, Manning's a initial asking price was around $20 million per year, which the Giants obviously balked at. The source said Condon made it clear he wanted his client to be the NFL's highest-paid player, even though Manning later told the Daily News "I don't have an ego about that."

There was no rush to get a deal done either. Manning's original six-year contract was worth $45-54 million and wasn't scheduled to run out until after the 2009 season, when he was due to earn a salary of $9.4 million. The Giants also had the option of placing the "franchise player" tag on him, if necessary, so there was no risk of him ever hitting free agency.

One way or another, the Giants were committed to making Manning their franchise quarterback for the rest of his career, and nothing the 28-year-old Manning has done since Super Bowl XLII has changed that. Despite some struggles at the end of last year, Manning still made the Pro Bowl for the first time after completing 60.3 percent of his passes (289 for 479) for 3,238 yards with 21 touchdowns and only 10 interceptions.

That's good enough for the Giants to put him in the elite company of $100 million quarterbacks. The list includes:

Brett Favre (10 years, $101 million from Green Bay in 2001), Drew Bledsoe (10 years, $103 million from New England in 2001), Donovan McNabb (12 years, $115 million from Philadelphia in 2002), Daunte Culpepper (10 years, $102 million from Minnesota in 2003), Michael Vick (10 years, $130 million from Atlanta in 2004), Carson Palmer (nine-years, $118.75 million from Cincinnati in 2005), and Ben Roethlisberger (eight years, $102 million from Pittsburgh in 2008).

Lakers pull Odom offer

LAS VEGAS -- Lamar Odom and the Los Angeles Lakers had reached an agreement on annual salary before the Lakers pulled out of contract talks with their versatile sixth man, sources with knowledge of the talks said on Tuesday.

Sources told ESPN.com that Odom and the Lakers had reached an accord entering the weekend on a per-season wage of $9 million for the 29-year-old. But Odom balked at L.A.'s unwillingness to extend an offer spanning more than three years in length and spent the past few days weighing his options.

The Los Angeles Times reported on its Web site earlier Tuesday night that Lakers owner Jerry Buss, upset that he was still waiting for Odom's response, has decided to take the offer off the table. Yet one source told ESPN.com that Odom was never given a deadline to accept or pass on the Lakers' three-year, $27 million pitch.

Lakers spokesman John Black acknowledged to the Times that "talks have broken down for the time being" but conceded that a resumption in negotiations is "within the realm of possibility," which most rival teams would expect given Odom's importance during the Lakers' championship run last season and the fact that the only apparent issue between the sides is contract length.

Neither Odom nor agent Jeff Schwartz could be reached for comment Tuesday night.

Yet it's believed that Odom has indeed received offers from the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks that -- because neither Florida nor Texas imposes state taxes -- are not as far away in value from the Lakers' presentation as it would seem.

Odom would have the ability with either the Heat or the Mavericks to sign a three-year, $19 million contract and negotiate a new deal with full Larry Bird rights in the summer of 2012 or take a five-year deal worth $34 million to bank more overall money, along with the state-tax benefits, than he could in a new three-year deal with the Lakers.

Odom, though, has made it clear over the past several months that he has no desire to leave the Lakers, whom he joined in the summer of 2004 when L.A. broke up its three-peat duo of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant by trading O'Neal to Miami for Odom, Caron Butler and Brian Grant. He made $14.1 million last season to complete the six-year, $63 million contract he received from Miami in the summer of 2003, but one source close to the process says he has accepted the $5 million pay cut without fuss.

Although he initially chafed at his move to the bench, Odom ultimately flourished as a sixth man, averaging 12.3 points, 9.1 rebounds and 32 minutes per game during the playoffs, when he frequently wound up partnering with Pau Gasol in the Lakers' frontcourt since young center Andrew Bynum was still developing.

Replacing Trevor Ariza with the more physical Ron Artest this offseason has given the Lakers someone to absorb at least some of Odom's minutes and responsibilities if he does leave. But Odom's departure would be undoubtedly celebrated by other playoff contenders in the West, since it's the luxury of having three long-limbed big men to flank Kobe Bryant -- Odom, Gasol and Bynum -- that makes L.A. so unique. Odom also ranks as one of Artest's closest friends in the game, so his continued presence would theoretically help Lakers coach Phil Jackson and Bryant manage the mercurial Artest.

Asked in a Monday telephone interview with the L.A. Times why a deal was not yet done, Odom said: "I don't know. That's why there are negotiations. I don't know. Of course I hope they can get it done. It's negotiations. Both sides are going to give and take. That's part of it. I don't know how long it's going to take. ... The Lakers have been too good to me to rub people over there the wrong way. The Lakers have been nothing but great to me, and I want to keep the relationship great."

In the event that the talks are not resuscitated, L.A. would have to count on the unpredictable Artest and the up-and-down Bynum to fill the void.

One source close to the process said Odom, in that scenario, would likely favor a return to the Heat, which would be a strong statement by Miami management to 2010 free agent-to-be Dwyane Wade. The Heat could theoretically sign Odom, trade for Utah's Carlos Boozer and then re-sign Boozer in the summer of 2010 without needing salary-cap space because Miami would own Boozer's Bird rights. Those moves would set Wade up to be flanked by two quality forwards and almost certainly enhance the Heat's chances of convincing their star to stay.

Suggs Agrees To 6-Year Deal

Terrell Suggs, who never minded playing under one-year franchise tags, found the financial security he had been seeking when he agreed to a six-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens.

The contract is worth $63 million, according to a source.

A news release from the team said the agreement, reached late Tuesday night, would be completed Wednesday afternoon.

"I wanted to stay in purple and black, the Ravens wanted to keep me in purple in black, and they stepped up and showed me that," Suggs said. "This means a lot to me and my family. Now I can be a Raven for the better part of my career."

The key to the contract was the structure. Suggs will receive signing-bonus and option-bonus money that will total $33.1 million in 2009 and 2010, according to a source.

That is believed to be second only to Peyton Manning, who received a $34 million signing bonus.

Defensive end Dwight Freeney received $31.5 million in signing- and option-bonus money during the first two years of his contract with the Colts. Freeney and Suggs were both represented by Gary Wichard.

"Getting a deal done with Terrell is consistent with our history of retaining our best Pro Bowl players, like Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Jonathan Ogden, Todd Heap and Jamal Lewis," Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said. "Securing Terrell for six seasons gives us a premier pass-rusher whose ability to stop the run does not get enough credit.

"This is a good day for the Ravens franchise."

Suggs had until 4 p.m. ET Wednesday to sign a long-term deal. Had he not, he would have played this season at $10.17 million and become a free agent next season. Now, on a long-term deal, Suggs becomes the highest-paid linebacker in NFL history.

The payout of the contract was the reason for the signing. In the first two years of the contract, Suggs will make $40 million. In the first three years, he will make $43.4 million. And in the first four years, he will make $48.3 million.

"You guys know that he energizes our practices. He brings that vitality to the game, and he makes the locker room fun," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "He's a foundation for our defense to stay at the highest level. Having him in training camp will take him to higher levels."

Suggs, who will turn 27 in October, has been the Ravens' franchise player for the past two seasons. He has 53 sacks during the first six years of his career and is considered one of the best pass-rushers in the league.

The 6-foot-3, 260-pound Suggs came out of Arizona State in 2003 as a first-round pick. He played defensive end until the Ravens started using more 3-4 schemes.

In some seasons, he played more at defensive end than linebacker, but the position didn't matter. Suggs' job was to get to the quarterback for sacks. Now, he has sacked the contract of a lifetime.