Saints ink Will Smith to extension

[mikus]

The New Orleans Saints locked up one of their cornerstones on Wednesday, signing defensive end Will Smith to a six-year, $70 million contract extension that includes $26 million in guaranteed money, NFL Network's Adam Schefter reports.
Will Smith, DE
New Orleans Saints

2007 Statistics:
Tackles: 66
Sacks: 7.0
FF: 2

Smith, who received about $20 million in bonuses when he signed as a first-round draft choice out of Ohio State in 2004, had one year remaining on his deal. It would have likely paid him in the range of $1.8 million next season, depending on which incentives he hit.

The deal will make Smith the third highest-paid defensive end in the NFL, behind Kansas City's Jared Allen and Indianapolis' Dwight Freeney.

Linkage