One bright spot of the New Orleans Saints’ bumpy start to the season has been edge rusher Chase Young. With seven sacks through seven games, he’s currently No. 2 in the NFL, just a half-sack behind Houston Texans superstar Will Anderson.
Young, drafted No. 2 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, has been an outstanding addition for New Orleans, and is quickly turning into one of the team’s best free agency signings in its franchise’s history behind quarterback Drew Brees and linebacker Demario Davis.
The trick for the Saints now will be making sure he doesn’t become a free agent again and doing so is going to cost the team a pretty penny.
The good news? They have the funds to pull it off.
Here are the top-five earners among NFL edge rushers based on average annual value:
- Houston Texans’ Will Anderson: $50 million
- Green Bay Packers’ Micah Parsons: $46.5 million
- Detroit Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson: $45 million
- Pittsburgh Steelers’ T.J. Watt: $41 million
- Houston Texans’ Danielle Hunter: $40.1 million
With Young on pace for 17 sacks this season, he’s likely to command a huge contract extension even if he were to fall shy of that remarkable number. His 10-sack total from last year, and another double-digit performance in 2026, would put him firmly in the conversation to more than surpass the $40 million mark, and potentially challenge the $50 million per year range.
At the very least, he’ll get close to Anderson if his performance continues.
As a team captain, top pass rusher and reliable run defender, Young checks the boxes as a complete defensive end that’s going to command top dollar.
Already under contract for the 2027 season, it might behoove New Orleans to try to get an early extension done during the upcoming offseason rather than wait for him to potentially have another stellar year and further raise the asking price.
However, the Saints have typically taken their time getting big deals done.
New Orlenas sits with just shy of $29 million available in 2027, while that amount skyrockets to $163 million next year. The team will also likely have a quarterback to reward in the coming years with promising second-year signal caller Tyler Shough. But being able to push Young’s new money to begin in 2028, as opposed to 2027, could help them offset some of the need to be ready for more big paydays on the way.
Many have suggested the Saints should try to get an extension done during this season. However, with the year Young is having, it’s not likely (though not impossible) that his management team would look to get ahead of what could be Young’s best season yet as a professional and getting a deal done before the year wraps up
