Ndamukong Suh lands $114 million contract with Dolphins

Dave Birkett | USA TODAY Sports

Ndamukong Suh never hid his desire to be the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL, and on Tuesday he'll get his wish.

Suh plans to sign with the Miami Dolphins when free agency opens next week on a deal that will pay him roughly $19 million per year, a person familiar with the deal but not authorized to speak about it publicly told the Detroit Free Press.

The contract, first reported by ESPN, will pay Suh about $114 million over the next six seasons, includes about $60 million guaranteed and vaults him past J.J. Watt as the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL.

The Lions had offered Suh a richer deal than Watt, one that paid him an average of $17 million per year with $58 million guaranteed, but in the end did not want to approach Miami's money.

A three-time first-team All-Pro, Suh's departure leaves the Detroit Lions with a gaping hole in the middle of their defense.

Suh, who surpasses J.J. Watt as the highest paid defensive player in NFL, had a team-high 8.5 sacks last year, and the Lions led the NFL in rushing defense en route to their second playoff appearance in Suh's five seasons in Detroit.

The Lions spent most of the past year insisting they would get a deal done with Suh, but after declining to use the franchise tag last Monday, it became apparent over the weekend they probably would not match any contract offer.

Suh, 28, had no shortage of suitors as the most coveted free agent on the market, an in-his-prime pass rusher who commands regular double-teams.

The Oakland Raiders, Jacksonville Jaguars, Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers all had some interest in signing Suh, but in the end the Dolphins' offer, championed by free-spending owner Stephen Ross, was too big to match.

With Suh gone, the Lions have set their sights on re-signing Nick Fairley, who many consider the second best defensive tackle on the market, and adding a run-stuffing complement to play next to him on the interior of the defensive line.

Fairley, the 13th overall pick in the 2011 draft, has 13.5 sacks in four seasons with the Lions but has never played all 16 games in a year. Last year, Fairley missed half the season with two sprained ligaments in his knee, an injury he suffered when he collided with Suh in the Lions' win over the Atlanta Falcons in London.

The Lions declined the fifth-year option on Fairley's contract last spring because of injury concerns, and were lukewarm about signing to him to a long-term deal when it appeared they had a good shot at retaining Suh.

Suh played 80 of a possible 82 games in five seasons with the Lions, including the playoffs – he was suspended two games for stomping on the leg of an opponent in 2011 and had a second suspension overturned on appeal last season – and leaves the team with 36 sacks, 239 tackles, four Pro Bowl selections and the makings of what is trending towards a Hall-of-Fame career.

He's easily the best player to leave the Lions as a free agent since the advent of free agency in 1993, and, aside from a useable chunk of cap space, the only thing the Lions will get for his departure is a compensatory draft pick, most likely in the third round, next year.

Dave Birkett writes for the Detroit Free Press, a Gannett property.