The Seattle Seahawks have made Pro Bowler Earl Thomas the highest-paid safety in the NFL.
According to NFL.com, the Seahawks gave Thomas a four-year contract extension worth $40 million with $27.725 guaranteed.
USA Today Sports noted that the 24-year-old’s base salary exceeds the $8.75 million average Jairus Byrd got with the six-year, $52.5 million deal he signed with the New Orleans Saints.
The team needed to lock up Thomas, who was set to make $4.625 million in base salary in the 2014 season and would have been a free agent in 2015.
He was selected by Seattle with the 14th overall pick in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft, the first for head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider.
So far, Thomas has recorded 105 tackles and caught 15 interceptions as a member of the Super Bowl-winning Legion of Boom defense. The $10 million-a-year man was also selected to his third consecutive Pro Bowl last season.
With Thomas’s deal done, the team can now focus on reaching an extension with cornerback Richard Sherman.