LeagueNews.co | Jason Patrick
In a recent Rugby League news slam dunk, Matty Johns has lobbed a truth bomb in the direction of Dylan Brown.
The former NRL player has stated that the kind of cash Brown's camp is aiming for should be reserved for the elite five-eighths of the game, like Cameron Munster.
Reports have been swirling that Brown's management is gunning for a new deal worth a whopping $1.2 million per season, placing him in the big leagues of NRL earners.
According to News Corp, Brown's reps have been stirring the pot with talks of a potential 10-year, $11 million jackpot with several rival clubs eyeing the New Zealand star.
Brown, currently pulling in $900,000 a season, is slated to hit the million-dollar mark in 2026 thanks to some clever clauses in his contract.
But the deal Brown inked with the Eels until 2031 comes with some player-friendly escape hatches, giving him the power to explore other options as early as round 10 in 2025.
His teammate Mitchell Moses, rocking a solid $1.25 million annual paycheck, also has similar get out of jail free cards for 2027 and 2028.
Eels fans are understandably feeling a tad hot under the collar about the situation.
While Moses has proven himself on the grandest stages, with standout performances for the Blues and Kangaroos, doubts linger over whether Brown has hit those same heights to justify a $1.2 million payday.
Joining the ranks of NRL's top earners like Munster, Cleary, Fa'asuamaleaui, Luai, and Trbojevic would put Brown in a category reserved for the cream of the crop.
Only Kalyn Ponga at the Knights is out-earning the pack with a cool $1.4 million-a-year deal.
Johns, never one to mince words, believes that Brown still has runs on the board to stack up against the lofty price tag being touted.