Another key defensive linemen will be staying put on his team in the AFC East. Bills general manager Brandon Beane confirmed that the team will pick up Ed Oliver‘s fifth-year option (Twitter link via ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg).
Slotting in at the third of four tiers with respect to value, Oliver’s option will come with a value of $10.753M. The Bills had until May 2 to make the call, but they didn’t need the extra time to deliberate. Oliver is coming off of a strong year with perfect attendance, 41 tackles, 14 quarterback hits, 10 tackles for loss and four sacks. That brings his Buffalo career totals to 12 sacks, 21 tackles for loss and 28 QB hits.
Now, it’s just a matter of bringing Oliver and his reps to the table for a long-term extension. He remains under contract for 2022 per his original rookie deal, while this fifth-year option locks him in through 2023. Thanks to performance incentives, that ’23 season will pay him the average of the No. 3-No. 20 highest-paid DTs in the league today.
For 2024 and beyond, Oliver will likely be looking at a $10M+ annual salary. That’s a good chunk of change for a not-quite-elite player, but there’s always a premium on young, disruptive defensive linemen.
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