Cashing In: Raiders Reward Renfrow With Extension -

Hunter Renfrow received a well-earned contract extension. This week, another key piece to the Las Vegas Raiders stays in the fold.

Over the span of his short, three-year career, Hunter Renfrow has progressed from an underdog story to a household name. Prior to his NFL career, he was best known for catching the game-winning touchdown in the 2017 National Championship game. But just fifteen touchdowns, 208 catches, and 2299 yards later, Renfrow is turning heads. Since his emergence in the NFL, Renfrow has earned respect from his opponents as one of the best route-runners in the game today. Considering high-vertical catches are not currently in his repertoire, the Las Vegas Raiders’ social media accounts have been overflowing with clips of his elite elusiveness.

Big Extension, Bigger Production

With Renfrow becoming more and more renowned, the Raiders determined it necessary that he be paid as such, and signed him to a two-year, $32 million contract, which lands him between the contracts of Robert Woods and Allen Robinson on a year-by-year basis. Seeing the fairly lucrative contracts many receivers have signed this offseason may have struck fear into some when hearing Renfrow was getting paid, but shelling out average money for an irreplaceable player seems to have calmed the nerves of many.

Around Full Press Coverage

OPINION: The Brutal End?: Raiders Close 2022 With Grueling Schedule

NFL NEWS: Broncos Wide Receiver Jerry Jeudy Arrested

Ep 114: Aaron Rodgers, OBJ, and The New York Jets
by Full Press Coverage on March 25, 2023 at 12:09 am

NFL: Have the Green Bay Packers Assembled a Super Bowl Defense?

FANTASY FOOTBALL: Fantasy Football: Rookie Running Back Rankings Post-NFL Draft

NHL: Auston Matthews to The Desert Doesn’t Seem Plausible

PODCAST: Full Press NFL Podcast Ep 42: Deebo Samuel Requests Trade; Possible Landing Spots

Slicker Than Most Think

One underrated aspect of Renfrow’s game is his heavy contact avoidance skills. While many smaller ball carriers may become targets for big hits, Renfrow has shown an impressive ability to avoid potential concussion- or injury-causing hits by securing the ball and diving forward when he senses contact approach. The impressive part of this talent is that Renfrow has yet to take a dive in the open field for sensing a hit that was not coming. In every instance, he has been correct about an approaching tackler.

Shocking Durability

Because of this, Renfrow has played in every game since his sophomore season in 2020. Even with his incredible athleticism and talent, his ability to avoid any potential major injuries plays a big role. Although $16 million per year seems fitting, it tends to be rare for a signing to make this much sense. Typically, many will believe the team overpaid by various amounts, but Renfrow earned every dollar of this new signing.

Door Remains Open

While it could be easy to immediately latch on to the narrative that he is simply a selfless person, there could be more at play here. The Raiders have one final offensive weapon that needs to be paid: tight end Darren Waller. Although his contract expires in 2024, the Raiders have every reason to keep him happy, and with demand for tight ends of his caliber skyrocketing around the league, they have no reason to. Renfrow’s signing could indicate the Raiders’ attempt to have the best of both worlds. Inking Waller to a longer-term deal ensures their offense stays threatening for years to come. It would be truly disappointing to build this offense to the level it is, just to lose it after a few years.