The Bills are keeping one of Josh Allen's top targets around for a while, as the team announced Wednesday that it signed tight end Dawson Knox to a four-year contract extension through 2026.
The deal is worth $53.6 million with more than $31 million guaranteed, according to NFL Media, making him the NFL's sixth-highest-paid tight end in terms of total value, per Spotrac. It's a hefty raise for Knox, who is set to draw a base salary of $2.51 million in the final season of his rookie contract.
The five highest-paid tight ends are George Kittle, Travis Kelce, Dallas Goedert, Mark Andrews and David Njoku. They all signed contracts worth between $13.6 million and $15 million per year, and between $23 million and $40 million in total guarantees. Knox's new contract averages $13.4 million per season.
A third-round pick out of Ole Miss in 2019, Knox has totaled 101 catches for 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns over his first three NFL campaigns. Last season was his best yet, with 49 grabs for 587 yards and nine scores. He's a big (6-4, 254 pounds), athletic (9.23 Relative Athletic Score, according to MathBomb) tight end who has shown the ability to make plays in the red zone and down the field, and he has emerged as one of Allen's most trusted weapons. Now, he will join Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis in being around for at least the next few seasons, and hopefully helping the Bills maintain their status as one of the NFL's top offenses.