Dez Bryant is grabbing most of the recent headlines ahead of the July 15 deadline for unsigned franchise players to agree to long-term contracts, but Denver Broncos‘ wide receiver Demaryius Thomas is also in line for a lucrative long-term deal very soon.

According to Troy Renck of the Denver Post, via a recent Broncos’ mailbag, Thomas wants “Calvin Johnson money” in a new contract. Johnson signed an seven-year contract extension with the Detroit Lions in March of 2012, with one year remaining on his rookie contract, and he was the same age (27) when the 2013 season started as Thomas is now.

Johnson is the NFL’s highest paid wide receiver by a fairly wide margin, with an average annual value of a little more than $16 million over the life of his contract and $48.75 million fully guaranteed to him (via Over The Cap.com). Mike Wallace is the second-highest paid wide receiver in the league right now, at $12 million per season (via Over the Cap.com), and he is not nearly as accomplished as Thomas or Bryant.

With reports that Bryant is close to a new deal with the Dallas Cowboys, Thomas’ representatives will be watching those developments closely. Over the last three seasons Bryant has averaged more touchdown receptions per season(13.7 ; 11.7 per season for Thomas), but Thomas has averaged more receptions (99; 91 for Bryant) and receiving yards (1,494; 1,312 for Bryant) per season over that span. A pass-heavy Broncos’ offense with Peyton Manning under center should be noted, but the Cowboys also threw the ball a lot before last season as quarterback Tony Romo had the third-most pass attempts in the league in 2012 (648) and averaged 35.7 pass attempts per game in 2013.

Assuming a long-term deal is agreed to ahead of the deadline, and with Bryant’s looming new deal with Dallas setting a benchmark that will likely be followed, Thomas should be no worse than the third-highest paid wide receiver in the NFL in a little over a week. It’s possible he plays the 2015 season on a $12.8 million franchise tender with an eye toward hitting it big next March, but both sides should be motivated to get something done in short order.

With Manning possibly entering his final season, and talk of a more run-oriented offense this year, right now may be the peak of Thomas’ value. That would seem to be motivation for the Broncos to allow him to play the coming season on a franchise tender, and reassess things next spring, but with a transition to another quarterback coming at some point soon the team needs to keep Thomas in the fold for the remainder of his best seasons.

Brad Berreman is a Senior Writer at Rant Sports.com. Follow him on Twitter.