A minor stir was created when the Las Vegas Raiders reported for the start of voluntary offseason work in April. It was reported that veteran left tackle Kolton Miller was not present as he entered the final year of his contract with no guaranteed money.
Fans began to worry even more when The Las Vegas Review-Journal's Vincent Bonsignore suggested that extending Miller might not be a priority for the new regime. Things have seemingly taken a positive turn, however, as Miller has been present for voluntary on-field work at OTAs even though he could have stayed away without consequence until mandatory minicamp.
More than that, Miller's performance has proven that he deserves a contract extension. The Raiders also don't have an immediate replacement for him at one of the most important spots on the field, and they know it.
Contract prediction is what Kolton Miller has earned from the Raiders
Spotrac's Michael Ginnitti has taken a look at some top candidates for a contract extension around the NFL this summer, and Miller was an easy addition to the list.
"Miller has been rock-solid for the Raiders for the better part of 5 straight seasons now and is set to earn $12.3M in the final year of his contract," Ginnitti said. "Las Vegas owes him a course correction here, which probably comes with doubling his current $11.5M APY in the next go-around."
Ginnitti also offered a prediction for how each extension situation would turn out, with both a timeline and speculative numbers for Miller. He predicted that Miller would sign a four-year, $100 million extension this summer with $75 million guaranteed.
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In terms of average annual salary, this prediction would place Miller firmly in the top five at his position. The total value would also rank him in the top five, and the $75 million guaranteed would possibly place him in the top two.
The Raiders certainly have the cap space to comfortably make this move, but it still feels unlikely that they would give Miller, who will turn 30 this season, $25 million a year. His current market value is $19.7 million according to Spotrac, which is noticeably lower.
That said, slightly overpaying Miller to keep him around for a few years may be worth it for the new regime in Las Vegas. Until the Raiders can cultivate a successor, they cannot afford to let one of the NFL's premier left tackles leave the building.