INDIANAPOLIS — The Colts plan to keep Quenton Nelson around for a long, long time, and that means a contract extension is coming at some point that will likely make the perennial All-Pro the highest-paid guard in football.
Nelson, only 25, is headed into the final year of his rookie contract, the fifth-year option that will pay him $13.754 million next season, but teams typically try to lock up key players the season before their rookie contract expires.
Indianapolis already has signed three other members of its landmark 2018 draft class — linebacker Darius Leonard, right tackle Braden Smith and running back Nyheim Hines — to extensions during training camp, but the team had an extra year on Nelson’s rookie deal because of the fifth-year option.