Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker signed a 4-year $26 million contract extension on Monday, making him the highest-paid kicker in the NFL on a per-year basis, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported.
The extension for the 29-year-old kicker comes after another season where he ranked among the top kickers in field goal percentage, extra-point percentage, and total points. Last year, Butker also helped his team win its second-straight Super Bowl.
Butkerās new deal includes $17.75 million guaranteed. The kicker represented and negotiated the deal himself, per Schefter. Butker becomes the highest-paid NFL kicker just over two months after he enraged many on the Left following his viral commencement speech at Benedictine College.
The three-time Super Bowl-winning kicker sparked outrage after telling the graduating class that his success was all because āa girl I met in band class back in middle school would convert to the faith, become my wife, and embrace one of the most important titles of all: homemaker.ā During the address, Butker also slammed Pride Month and President Joe Bidenās pro-abortion policies.Highest paid kickers in the NFL on a per-year basis:
šHarrison Butker: $6.4M
šJustin Tucker: $6M
šJake Elliott: $6M
šMatt Gay: $5.62M
šGraham Gano: $5.5M https://t.co/EMMxvwnjgLā Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 5, 2024
Butkerās commencement address sparked outcry and mockery among some celebrities and athletes, including Katy Perry, Chelsea Handler, and Serena Williams. A Change.org petition also called on the Chiefs to drop Butker. The petition, which garnered nearly 240,000 signatures, called Butkerās comments āsexist, homophobic, anti-trans, anti-abortion, and racist,ā but the teamās ownership, head coach, and Butkerās teammates stood by their kicker amid the outrage.
Days after the backlash, Butker stood by his comments, saying that the āshocking level of hateā would not deter him from being āunapologeticā about his faith.
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āIf it wasnāt clear that the timeless Catholic values are hated by many, it is now,ā Butker said at the Courage Under Fire gala in Nashville on May 24. āOver the past few days, my beliefs, or what people think I believe, have been the focus of countless discussions around the globe.ā
āIn my seven years in the NFL, Iāve become familiar with positive and negative comments. But the majority of them revolve around my performance on the field,ā Butker added. āBut, as to be expected, the more Iāve talked about what I value most, my Catholic faith, the more polarizing Iāve become. Itās a decision Iāve consciously made, and one I do not regret at all.ā