Getty Images It was negotiated (wink nod) in a matter of minutes, and it was the first deal that emerged during the legal tampering window on Monday. Here’s a look inside the final version of the contract to be signed by new Raiders tackle Trent Brown. Per a source with knowledge of the deal, Brown receives a $10 million roster bonus in 2019, a $5 million salary in 2019, and a whopping (and fully guaranteed) salary of $21.25 million in 2020. The deal also includes non-guaranteed base salaries of $13.75 million and $15 million in 2021 and 2022, respectively, along with annual workout bonuses of $250,000. It’s a simple and straightforward deal. Simple and straightforward enough to be negotiated, in theory, only a few minutes after the window for permissibly negotiating such deals opened.<doc-sep>The moment the free agency negotiation period open on Monday morning the Raiders called Trent Brown’s agent. Ten minutes later, he called Brown to say he had an offer he couldn’t refuse that would make Brown the highest paid offensive lineman in NFL history. Naturally, he took the deal and thus the first deal of free agency was announced. Along with those reports, came word that Brown would be playing left tackle while previously labeled “left tackle of the future” Kolton Miller would be moving to right tackle. Not long after that, those reports were being viewed as perhaps less of a fact than perhaps an assumption based on the fact that Smith’s sizable paycheck — one that typically left tackles get — and it being the left tackle spot for the Patriots that earned him that check. But the Raiders are saying not so fast. They aren’t admitting to any such decision and are refusing to even address it at this time. In Antonio Brown’s introductory press conference, Mike Mayock was asked about on which side his new 6-8 tackle would be playing and he said merely “we’re not even going to address that today.” Soon thereafter Trent Brown held his introductory press conference, and he stuck to the cliche “whatever is going to help the team.” He wouldn’t even say which side he prefers. It’s hard to say exactly how much keeping this decision quiet helps the team strategically. After all, whichever side Brown plays on, Miller will simply play on the other side, so it’s not like there is clearly an open tackle spot to fill. Maybe they just want to fend off any more specific questions about either player acclimating to switching to the other side. Or why they would give up on their 2018 top pick as the left tackle after one season. Or why they would pay record money to a right tackle. All questions that will be asked eventually regardless. And yes, I realize the best pass rushers line up on the right side, but that’s mostly because they line up against the side that raises their chances of getting to the quarterback, so they’re going against the lesser of the two typically. We’ll just have to type more words to add the possibility of either player lining up in either spot until probably OTA’s in May to know for certain.<doc-sep>Each February, America wonders how New England keeps reaching the Super Bowl. The Patriots have been in nine this century, four of the past five and each of the previous three. The Pats have won it six times. The obvious answer is coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady. A more inconspicuous, yet perhaps just as telling, reason can be found in a simple transaction that occurred in the first moments of Monday’s NFL free agency “tampering” period. “The Oakland Raiders sign offensive tackle Trent Brown to a four-year, $66 million deal, with $36.75 million guaranteed.” Offensive lineman Trent Brown served as great insurance for the Patriots. The free agent was reportedly rewarded for his play with a record-setting deal with the Raiders. (AP) Brown was New England’s starting left tackle for its Super Bowl champion team last season. He may prove to be a good signing by the Raiders and the Patriots will regret seeing him leave. Or he may not live up to the expensive contract. Or something in the middle. That’s the gamble of free agency. For New England though, Brown represents the franchise’s genius in almost all capacities – namely how a keen eye for talent, disciplined salary-cap management and deft roster construction got it a Super Bowl starter for little money and literally no roster assets. Brown played only one season in Foxborough. A seventh-round draft pick for San Francisco in 2015, Brown had become a low-key starter for the 49ers before finishing the 2017 on injured reserve due to a bad shoulder. Brown played right tackle, which is generally less valued than the left tackle who protects the blind side of right-handed-quarterbacks. Despite the injury and questions it presented, Belichick liked Brown as a player, perhaps even as a left tackle. In the middle of the 2018 draft, he made a deal to get him, sending San Francisco the 95th pick in exchange for Brown and the Niners’ 143rd selection. It was a deal (a 48-slot swap in the middle rounds of the draft) that only the most die-hard fans even heard about. As for Brown, Belichick would eventually describe the 6-foot-8, 360-pounder as a “rare” combination of size and athleticism. “He’s very gifted,” Belichick said. Story continues Despite that, Belichick wasn’t counting on Brown to become a key starter. He was just seeking depth and value after New England let longtime left tackle Nate Solder leave as a free agent following the 2017 season. Belichick planned on replacing Solder with first-round pick Isaiah Wynn from the University of Georgia. The 23rd overall selection represented a major asset allocation, by the Patriots. Brown was low-priced insurance, particularly since he was on the final year of his rookie contract that paid him just $1.9 million in 2018. Solder’s four-year deal with the Giants, by comparison, could average as much as $15.5 million. The insurance policy proved necessary when Wynn tore an Achilles during the offseason and was lost for the year. Brown stepped in at left tackle and anchored a cheap but extremely effective offensive line. According to advanced statistics from Football Outsiders, New England ranked first in adjusted sack rank, which measures pass protection, and third in adjusted line yards, which measures the line’s role in rushing yardage. No one in the NFL thought Brown would be that good. If San Francisco did, it wouldn’t have traded him for so little (with that 95th pick it took defensive back Tarvarius Moore, who was a reserve for most of the season although he showed potential late). If any other team saw it they would have offered the Niners more for Brown. Having proven himself last season, Brown was due for a raise. Yet rather than get sentimental about his role in delivering a Lombardi Trophy, Belichick again decided to avoid spending big – and sucking up valuable salary-cap space – on the left tackle position. Instead he is counting on Wynn becoming the star he was projected to become on a far cheaper rookie contract. Wynn’s cap hit for 2019 is just $2.6 million, according to overthecap.com. There’s more to it, though. By losing Brown to free agency, the Patriots are now due to receive a compensatory draft pick from the NFL for the 2020 draft. It should come at the end of the third round, in other words, the late 90s overall. It almost exactly replaces the pick that New England used to get Brown in the first place. So, the Patriots netted a cheap starting left tackle who helped them win a Super Bowl for nothing, all part of multiyear roster management at its best. Of course, since this is Belichick’s Patriots, they not only gave up nothing in the long run, they got something back. Perhaps even something big. In addition to Brown, San Francisco sent the 143rd pick in the 2018 draft, which the Pats used to select inside linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley out of Purdue. Bentley looks like a steal, earning enough of Belichick’s trust that he was a rare Week 1 rookie starter (when he recorded seven tackles against Houston). Bentley injured his bicep later in September and was lost for the season, but Patriots coaches believe he will be a defensive cornerstone for seasons to come. Neither Bentley nor Wynn are flashy names that will make news here on the first day of free agency. Only hardcore fans even know who they are. That’s fine with New England. Both are projected 2019 starters as the Pats push for another Super Bowl. Besides, almost no one heard of Trent Brown … until he won the Super Bowl. More from Yahoo Sports:<doc-sep>The free-agency tampering period was 10 minutes old when Trent Brown’s phone rang on Monday morning. It was the offensive tackle’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus. “Drew just called me and was like, ‘Bro, we got an irrefutable offer and it’s going to make you the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history,’” Brown said Wednesday night at his introductory press conference. Rosenhaus wasn’t done. “‘You have a great opportunity to go and play with a great coach, a great coaching staff, a great organization with a lot of history,’” he told Brown. “‘Then in a year, you’ll be a part of the first team to ever play in (Las) Vegas.’ I couldn’t turn that offer down.” Later that night, the 6-foot-8, 380-pound Brown broke down and cried.<doc-sep>
Jim McIsaac/Getty Images The Oakland Raiders already added one star from an AFC rival by trading for Antonio Brown and have reportedly added another big piece from another. Adam Schefter of ESPN reported free-agent offensive tackle Trent Brown intends to sign a four-year, $66 million contract with $36.75 million in guaranteed money. The contract will make Brown the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history. Earlier Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported the Raiders were expected to be aggressive bidders for Brown and that the Raiders "love" Brown. Brown, who turns 26 in April, spent the 2018 season with the New England Patriots. He started all 16 games at left tackle for the Super Bowl champs, emerging as a vital replacement for Nate Solder. Pro Football Focus graded him as the best offensive tackle in the postseason. "Trent's very athletic," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said, per NESN's Doug Kyed. "A lot of times on the left side of the line you face some very athletic players. Some have size but a lot of them are maybe a little undersized relative to the guys on the right side, but their speed and athleticism can be a little bit greater. "He's able to match up with those guys with his length and his athleticism, and then he has some advantages over there with his size and his power. He's a very unique player with his skill set. The size is rare. His athleticism is good but when you combine it with his size, that's rare too. You don't see guys that big playing over there and he's very gifted." The Raiders, equipped with three first-round picks and heaps of cap room after a down 2018, have been aggressive in retooling their roster already. They sent a third- and fifth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for Brown and reworked the Pro Bowl wideout's contract to give him $30.1 million guaranteed, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. Video Play Button Videos you might like The Raiders have a need at running back and could wind up being suitors for Le'Veon Bell or another high-profile back on the market. Given their aggressiveness in adding offensive talent from other teams, it appears they'll be looking to build a defense through the draft. The Patriots, meanwhile, will be looking for a starting left tackle for the second straight offseason.