Jake Matthews will now be the left tackle for the Atlanta Falcons for the foreseeable future after signing a new deal, but they overpaid for his services.
Earlier this offseason, the Atlanta Falcons made an obvious investment in a former MVP. They locked up quarterback Matt Ryan to a deal that makes him the highest-paid quarterback in the league (for now). There was never any question that a deal of that magnitude was coming for Ryan, who has been playing like a man in his prime in recent years.
After investing so heavily in Ryan though, the Falcons then made a move to keep that investment safe. They did so by locking up left tackle Jake Matthews through the 2023 season.
Last Friday, the Falcons inked Matthews to a five-year, $75 million extension. The No. 6 overall pick from the 2014 NFL Draft will now be protecting Ryan for quite some time in Atlanta, and will be doing so while being paid handsomely. The new deal for Matthews will make him one of the three highest paid offensive tackles in the NFL.
Over the past two seasons, Matthews has made tremendous strides as a player. Throughout his first two years in the league, the word “bust” was starting to be thrown around as the first-rounder performed poorly in his role on the edge of the offensive line. However, he’s since developed and progressed a great deal and has been an above-average player at the position.
Last season, Matthews graded out as the ninth-best overall offensive tackle in the NFL according to Pro Football Focus. For further insight into how he performed, PFF gave him the 10th best pass blocking grade among tackles and the 14th best run blocking grade. That is to say, he was above average in both facets of his job, which he certainly deserves credit for.
Given his development and the aforementioned investment in Ryan, it stands to reason why the Falcons would want to put stock in Matthews. The issue, however, is how much money they’re using to do so.
Matthews is not a top-three offensive tackle in the NFL. While salaries aren’t always an indication of how good players are, a big reason for that is because bad contracts are handed out. This deal for Matthews is in danger of being a contract in that conversation. They are paying premium money for a player who you likely wouldn’t consider premium at his position.
In terms of what Matthews does on the field, he will likely continue to be solid if he remains healthy, and keeping Ryan upright is of the utmost importance. But when it comes to building and paying the rest of the team, the Falcons could come to regret forking over so much money for a player who simply isn’t elite.