NFL fans minimize Jake Elliott’s massive $24,000,000 extension to tie salary record with Justin Tucker - “Nobody cares, it’s a kicker”

Jake Elliott is getting a massive payday.

On Wednesday, just hours before the NFL's new league year commenced, the Philadelphia Eagles extended their Super Bowl-winning kicker on a monstrous $24-million extension that spans four years, tying him with the Baltimore Ravens' Justin Tucker for highest-paid player at the position. The move is expected to save the team almost $2 million in salary cap space.

A few fans, however, belittled the new contract for various reasons:

"Nobody cares, it's a kicker," a fan posted

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Jake Elliott extension part of Eagles' recommitment to special teams core

Jake Elliott's new deal comes a day after punter Braden Mann and long snapper Rick Lovato reupped with the team on two- and one-year deals, respectively. These moves strengthen the trust that Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni and general manager Howie Roseman have in special teams coordinator Michael Clay, who received an extension last month amid the firings of one-and-done coordinators Brian Johnson (offense) and Sean Desai (defense).

Sports Illustrated's John McMullen wrote at the time that he could not have foreseen such a move at the beginning of the 2023-24 season:

"Had one of the 97 gambling outlets flooding my inbox with the latest betting odds on everything from Super Bowl LIX futures to the nonsense of Saquon Barkley landing with the Eagles, put numbers on which Philly coordinator was the most likely not to be back after the campaign, Clay would have easily led the field. And that would have been perceptive from the smart-money crowd.

"Clay limped into Year 3 as the leader of the lone weakness during a historic 2022 Eagles season where his special teams groups rated bottom five in the NFL by Rick Gosselin’s statistical measuring stick or Pro Football Focus' film-based observations."

Instead, Desai mishandled a top-two defense so poorly that he lost playcalling duties to the much-maligned Matt Patricia. Johnson, meanwhile, managed to keep the offense in the top 10 in multiple aspects, including points per game and red-zone success.

Clay, however, elevated the special teams unit from bottom-tier to top ten, including best in special teams DVOA. Elliott became an All-Pro for the first time in his career; Mann became consistent in his punts; and a youth movement led by the likes of Kelee Ringo rejuvenated the coverage corps.