Kolb Gets Extended and Links for Friday

A second Philadelphia athlete got a nice extension this week, his name is Kevin Kolb. The Eagles inked Kolb to a contract that will keep him in Philly through next year, guaranteeing him $12.26 million. Not quite Ryan Howard money but at least the dude is now paid like a starter in the NFL. If they hadn't extended him, Kolb would have made only $550,000. Now he'll get a $10.7 million signing bonus in addition to a bump in his yearly salary. That money will sure kill a lot of hogs.

Anyway, this actually works out well for the Eagles. Since the CBA expired there are all types of weird rules around extentions. This meant the Eagles couldn't sign Kolb to an extension without it being ridiculously team friendly since yearly salaries can't increase more than 30% each year due to the new rules. Thus, the Eagles get him on a two-year deal and get to see if he's any good. If he totally blows, they can move on. If he's awesome they can resign him to a long-term, big dollar contract. It's pretty much a win-win.

Anyways, here's to hoping that Kolb is the truth. Cause if he isn't...well....let's just not think about that right now. Now onto the links...

• Ryan Howard's deal sent shockwaves through baseball and has been panned by most media members and baseball insiders. The most critical? Probably Matthew Carruth of Fangraphs.
• Matt Gelb of The Inquirer says that Howard's extenstion was simply the cost of doing business for the Phillies.
• ESPN's Jayson Stark looks at the deal from a historic perspective and what it means for the Phillies moving forward.
• Here is some video of Phillippe Aumont. Apparently if you're the player of the game in the minor leagues you get a $20 gift card. That's pretty sweet.
• Bleacher Report ranked the Top 25 Worst Nightmare Moments in Sports History. Thankfully only one Philadelphia sports moment makes the list. It's Joe Carter, at #23.
• Disney doesn't want you reading this.
• Here are some hilarious motivational posters courtesy of The Chive.
• Chris Farley didn't die. He just came back as this little girl.
• Underbutt.
• I. Can't. Wait. For. Summer.

Enjoy your weekend.