The Allure and Disappointment of The Fifth-Year Option
First-round picks come with a contract that offers an extra year of team-control. Indeed, the successful first rounder most commonly gets a fifth year added onto their deals. Doing so gives the player a sizeable raise and the team another year to figure out an extension. Unfortunately, not all first rounders work out, and the Vikings currently find themselves in that position. According to Chris Tomasson of The Pioneer Press, the Vikings don’t intend to pick up the fifth-year option for Garrett Bradbury.
Garrett Bradbury and The Fifth-Year Option
Leading up to the 2019 draft, mock drafters everywhere were connecting the Vikings to Bradbury. Pat Elflein had struggled after showing promise as a rookie, so the belief was that adding a first-round center could help two positions. Bradbury would be an upgrade at center and Elflein could shuffle to a guard spot.
That plan didn’t work out.
Since coming into the NFL, Garrett Bradbury has routinely been one of the worst centers in the league. The athleticism is present, allowing him to climb to the second level and get into open space for screens. The issue is with the more basic components of being an offensive lineman: anchoring in pass protection. Last year, he finished as the 35th-ranked center in the PFF grades for pass blocking.
Recently, I’ve been an advocate for trading down so the team can trade back up. If the Vikings move down from 12th, they’ll pick up extra picks. Can they then leverage that extra capital into a chance to, say, snag the 32nd pick from the Lions? Doing so would give the Vikings another first rounder and therefore another player who offers five years of cost control.
The upside for a move like that is obvious. Minnesota could bring in another talented player while setting themselves up for a bit of a better financial situation. One thinks of players like Kaiir Elam, Tyler Linderbaum, and Boye Mafe as options at the very end of the first. All three could plausibly make a positive impact as early as their rookie year.
In some ways, though, Garrett Bradbury offers a cautionary tale. First-round picks don’t always work out, and the perceived benefit of a fifth year doesn’t amount to much if a player struggles.
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”1000917″ player=”26281″ title=”WATCH%20Is%20Matthew%20Stafford%20a%20’Hall%20of%20Fame’%20caliber%20Quarterback%20″ duration=”67″ description=”NFL Hall of Famer and Super Bowl Champion, Marshall Faulk, joins Carolyn Manno to discuss Matthew Stafford’s success with the Los Angeles Rams, and how many NFL teams have opted for a ‘win now’ strategy. Faulk also discusses how important Deebo Samuel is, and why Matt Ryan will succeed with the Indianapolis Colts. All that and much more!” uploaddate=”2022-04-27″ thumbnailurl=”undefined” contentUrl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/streaming/1000815/1000815.m3u8″ width=”16″ height=”9″]
