Joe Burrow might be the happiest person in the NFL circuit. Simultaneously, his NFL rollercoaster has already begun. A few weeks into training camp, a concerning injury sent him off the field on a cart, leaving fans and his team anxious about the season ahead. It turned out to be a substantial calf strain, keeping him sidelined for a while.

However, after five weeks of recovery, he’s now back in full practice with the team and is gearing up for his return in the Cincinnati Bengals‘ season opener against the Cleveland Browns on September 10. But that’s not the only exciting development for Burrow’s fans.

Joe Burrow set to create history with a lucrative contract

According to an update from the ML Football Twitter page, Joe Burrow is on the verge of becoming the highest-paid player in NFL history. An excerpt from the tweet states, “BREAKING: Superstar quarterback Joe Burrow is expected to finalize a long-term deal with the Cincinnati #Bengals before the end of the week that would make him the highest-paid #NFL player of ALL-TIME, league sources tell @_MLFootball.”

The tweet also claimed that the player’s camp was negotiating for injury protections within the contract. Burrow is under contract for the 2023 season, with the franchise having already exercised his 2024 fifth-year option.

Read more: Joe Burrow May Take a Separate Path From Justin Herbert to Walk in Patrick Mahomes’ Shadow, NFL Insider Says

Now, this new update puts him on a path followed by other NFL superstars of his generation.

Is Joe Burrow going to surpass Lamar Jackson?

Burrow is currently slated to earn $11.5 million in the upcoming season, marking the fourth year of his rookie contract. His fifth-year option for the 2024 season, worth a substantial $29.5 million, has already been activated by the Bengals.

Given the recent trend of star quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson ($260 million), Jalen Hurts ($255 million), Patrick Mahomes ($450 million), Russell Wilson ($245 million), and Justin Herbert securing massive contract extensions, it’s evident that Burrow is poised to follow suit. In July, Herbert, who was drafted alongside Burrow in the 2020 class, inked a lucrative five-year, $262.5 million deal, making him the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback with an average annual salary of $52.5 million.

All in all, it’s only a matter of time before Joe Burrow’s extension falls in a similar range, and it appears to be imminent.

Watch this story | Joe Burrow blesses the practice field for Cincinnati Bengals looking nothing like a man back from surgery