Demaryius Thomas

Three deals, one mad dash, $240 million -- is there something fishy?

Published Jul. 16, 2015 3:48 a.m. ET

foxsports

With the deadline for franchise players to sign long-term deals winding down, a pair of All-Pro receivers and a pair of Super Bowl hopefuls agreed to deals Wednesday … to the EXACT SAME DEAL as a matter of fact.

Coincidence? Collusion? Could be either, could be both. But with both players -- the Cowboys’ Dez Bryant and the Broncos’ Demaryius Thomas -- now signed to five-year, $70 million deals, it likely won’t matter.

But there may be more to the backstory, and it could all boil down to potential movement by the players’ agents. That drama unfolded not long after the Chiefs made pass-rush specialist Justin Houston the highest-paid linebacker in NFL history with a six-year, $101 million contract.

In fact, the only franchised player who did not sign before the deadline was the Giants’ Jason Pierre-Paul, who is still recovering from a fireworks mishap on July 4 which reportedly cost him a finger.

With the deadline now passed, the Giants can only sign JPP to a one-year contract for the upcoming season.

For more details on how — and why — these deals got done just before the clock struck midnight (OK, 3 p.m. ET), FOX Sports 1 NFL Insider Peter Schrager gives you the scoop in the video above.