Ringo Chiu / Shutterstock.com
Michael Wilson just got paid. The Arizona Cardinals wide receiver has agreed to a three-year contract extension, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport.
The numbers are significant. Schefter reports the deal is worth $75 million, with a max value of $78 million – and $47 million of that is guaranteed. Wilson was already locked into the final year of his rookie deal this season, set to earn roughly $3.9 million, according to Spotrac.
That average annual salary of $25 million puts him firmly in the league’s upper tier at the position; Wilson now sits among the top 25 receivers in the NFL by pay.
A breakout year made this happen
It’s easy to see why Arizona wanted to lock him up. Wilson, 26, put together a breakout third season – 78 catches, 1,006 yards, and 7 touchdowns across 17 games, though he only started 13 of them. That production led all Cardinals receivers.
He didn’t just pad stats early and disappear either. Wilson caught fire down the stretch, piling up 775 receiving yards over Arizona’s final eight games of the season.
For context: tight end Trey McBride actually led the team in every major category, hauling in 126 catches for 1,239 yards and 11 touchdowns. Wilson’s emergence gave Arizona a legitimate one-two punch.
Here’s what really stands out though – Wilson passed Marvin Harrison Jr. on the depth chart. That’s notable considering Harrison was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 draft. Wilson, on the other hand, came into the league as a third-round pick out of Stanford in 2023, listed at 6-foot-2 and 213 pounds.
This extension didn’t happen overnight.
Wilson and the Cardinals had been negotiating for months, according to ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss. Wilson and his camp reportedly weren’t satisfied with Arizona’s early offers, believing they didn’t reflect what he’d shown on the field.
Joining an exclusive class
Wilson’s 1,000-yard season puts him in select company from his draft class. He’s now the third wideout from the 2023 group to hit that mark, joining Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Zay Flowers.
And just like those two, Wilson has cashed in with a multiyear extension of his own.
