What is Santonio Holmes Value?

Recently wide receiver Santonio Holmes has been garnering headlines as several teams, mainly the Washington Redskins, reportedly are very interested in the flashy playmaker.  The free agent receiver will be looking for a huge pay day, which begs the question what is Holmes’ value on the open market?

Well Jason Fitzgerald from NYJETSCAP.com did a tremendous job analyzing the Holmes contract situation and offered this insight:

“We are probably looking at a 5 year contract with a guarantee somewhere in the range of $18 million and cash payouts of $28.5-30 million in the first three years of the deal. The total value of the contact will be around $42.25 million. Because of the drug issue this will probably be a more complex contract than some of the other deals the Jets have signed. It will probably preclude the Jets from using option bonuses or straightforward roster bonuses in the deal. Most likely the Jets will need to pay larger salaries or signing bonus money up front so that they can get the money back in the event of a violation and then use a second prorated bonus in year 3 after Holmes proves he can “stay clean”.”

This is some very interesting information from Jason as he obtained his numbers by comparing Holmes to several other receivers including Roddy White, Reggie Wayne, and Greg Jennings (I strongly recommend that you read Jason’s analysis).  Now the next question is  should the Jets offer Santonio this type of contract? Holmes brings a lot to the table in terms of his explosive playmaking ability and route running, but was somewhat inconsistent with his hands.  For every great catch that he made, he dropped an easy third down grab.

This is truly a tough call for the New York Jets, a team that will have to use their cap space wisely as they have approximately 17 free agents to deal with.  What do you think about Holmes value Jets fans? Discuss in the JetNation forums.

Tyson Rauch

See Full Bio