Tag: Contracts

Chiefs RB Jerick McKinnon shared his thoughts on positional pay discrepancies

Chiefs running back Jerick McKinnon shared his thoughts on the devaluation of his position, which is making headlines around the NFL. | from: @EdEastonJr

The offseason talk around the NFL has centered mainly on the contract expectations of running backs in recent weeks. The position has been severely devalued in the modern pass-first league, and many of the league’s top rushers were placed on franchise tags ahead of the 2023 season.

Kansas City Chiefs running back Jerick McKinnon is a veteran who has seen the change in how offenses utilize players at his position. He spoke with reporters after Tuesday’s practice to share his thoughts on the lack of financial accommodations for running backs.

“[It is] very tough, you know, the running back position… there is a lot of demand on that position,” He explained. “As far as you know, running the ball in between tackles… taking that beating. Nowadays, [you are] basically turning to a receiver out the backfield, pass blocking on protections. So, definitely in that aspect the position [has], along the way, been devalued because it’s such a passing league.

“When you step back and look at it, it’s definitely something that should be more valued than what it is. And as far as the contract situations, I guess it’s kind of based on the market. So it’s kind of hard to really say how that happens. Every position every year fluctuates. You [have] got a guy who gets paid this much he sets the market, everybody kind of gets the contract [based] off of that guy.”

Saquon Barkley of the New York Giants recently ended his holdout after agreeing to the one-year deal following his franchise tag designation.

“This year, it’s been kind of difficult with top running backs on the franchise tag,” McKinnon continued. “So, when the top guys get the franchise tag, you know, that’s the ceiling. So everybody else falls under that. As far as the guys getting franchise tagged, I feel them on that side, you know, they put in the work to pay their dues. I they are looking for a payday long term, guarantees, which is one of those things that, you know, it’s kind of bittersweet about the game and the business part, when it comes down to that.”

For his part, McKinnon decided to return to Kansas City on a one-year deal worth just over $1 million after testing the market as a free agent in the offseason. His return was a welcome development for the Chiefs and their fans after his contributions proved crucial to the team’s playoff run last season that culminated in a Super Bowl LVII victory back in February.

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Breaking down the incentives in Marvin Jones contract with the Lions

Veteran WR Marvin Jones returned to the Detroit Lions on a 1-year deal with a lot of incentive bonuses

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Veteran wide receiver Marvin Jones returned to the Detroit Lions this offseason after two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jones, now wearing No. 0, played for the Lions from 2016-2020 and experienced a lot of success.

Jones signed a one-year deal with the Lions with a base salary of $3 million. The deal is laden with many incentives that can earn Jones quite a bit more money. Ari Merov of The 33rd Team obtained the details of all the incentive clauses and bonuses

Per Merov, these are the 2023 season incentives in Jones’ contract with Detroit.

55 receptions – $200,000
65 receptions – $200,000
75 receptions – $200,000
700 yards receiving – $200,000
850 yards receiving – $200,000
1,000 yards receiving – $300,000
5 receiving TDs – $200,000
7 receiving TDs – $200,000
10 receiving TDs – $300,000

Last year in Jacksonville, Jones caught 46 passes for 529 yards and three TDs. A repeat of those figures would mean the 33-year-old Jones won’t hit any of his incentives. In his last season in Detroit, Jones posted 76 receptions for 978 yards and nine TDs. That output would earn Jones $600,000 with his new deal for the Lions.

Saints have already signed half their picks in the 2023 NFL draft

The Saints have already signed half their picks in the 2023 NFL draft. Four first-year players put pens to paper on Friday:

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How’s this for a nice and simple New Orleans Saints offseason? The team announced Friday that four of the players they picked in the 2023 NFL draft have already signed their rookie contracts: running back Kendre Miller (third round out of TCU), offensive lineman Nick Saldiveri (fourth round from Old Dominion), defensive back Jordan Howden (fifth round of Minnesota), and wide receiver A.T. Perry (sixth round, Wake Forest).

That leaves just three other first-year pros yet to put pen to paper, but they’ll follow along soon enough. Many of the details in these rookie contracts are tied to draft slots these days, so there isn’t much haggling and negotiating to be done. All of these players are in town for Saints rookie minicamp practices over the weekend, so it’s a safe bet that Bryan Bresee, Isaiah Foskey, and Jake Haener will sign soon, too.

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Projected rookie contracts for Chiefs’ 2023 draft picks

A quick look at the projected rookie contracts for each of the #Chiefs’ seven draft picks.

The Kansas City Chiefs have yet to ink any players from their 2023 NFL draft class to their rookie contracts. But it’s only a matter of time before all seven players wind up signing their deals with the team.

Rookie contract values will vary depending on when a player was drafted. The standard contract is a four-year deal, but the Chiefs’ first-round draft pick will have a fifth-year option. Kansas State DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah will have the team’s top-earning rookie contract from this draft class, while Ball State’s Nic Jones will have the lowest-earning contract.

Below are the projected contracts based on draft slots for each of the seven players drafted by Kansas City, courtesy of Spotrac:

Jaguars 2023 draft: Projected contract for each Jacksonville pick

The contract for each player picked by the Jaguars in the 2023 NFL draft has largely been predetermined by the CBA.

The Jacksonville Jaguars reportedly reached an agreement on a four-year deal with sixth-round wide receiver Parker Washington on Thursday, but that still leaves another 12 draft picks to sign.

While that may sound like a costly endeavor, the total cost of the signings shouldn’t be much. The collective sum of the 2023 cap hits for the Jaguars’ picks will exceed 10 million, but the NFL only requires teams to fit their top 51 contracts under the salary cap (as fitting 90 under the cap in the offseason would be unrealistic).

With a rookie wage scale in place and the Jaguars not picking in the top 10 for the first time in a while, the total cost of a baker’s dozen of rookie contracts isn’t much.

Here are what the 13 draftees are likely to get when they finalize their deals with the Jaguars:

Few NFL teams have been poached as heavily as the Saints in free agency

Few NFL teams have been poached as heavily as the Saints in free agency. They’ve lost at least six players to other teams, at a combined annual contract value of $48 million:

Few NFL teams have been poached as heavily as the New Orleans Saints in free agency. They’ve lost at least six of their in-house free agents to other teams, several of them NFC South rivals. Per Over The Cap’s Jason Fitzgerald, the six Saints free agents who have left town are earning a combined average annual contract value north of $48 million. That ranks fourth-highest around the league, behind the San Francisco 49ers ($83.6 million), Las Vegas Raiders ($67.3 million), and Philadelphia Eagles ($58 million).

It’s hard to find fault with defensive tackle David Onyemata agreeing to play on a $13 million per-year salary, even if it’s with the miserable Atlanta Falcons. Hopefully he upcharged them, as did linebacker Kaden Elliss (who is bringing in $7.17 million a year in Atlanta). Defensive tackle Shy Tuttle ($6.5 million per year) and quarterback Andy Dalton ($5 million per year) are also drawing nice paydays from the Carolina Panthers. Defensive end Marcus Davenport got $13 million from the Minnesota Vikings. Wide receiver Deonte Harty, coming off a foot injury, received $4.75 million from the Buffalo Bills. We’re waiting to see what safety Justin Evans got from the Eagles, but it’s not expected to be substantial.

But back to the Saints. All of these losses will be challenging to replace, but the team has already gotten started by signing a couple of starting defensive tackles in Nathan Shepherd and Khalen Saunders. They were able to get Jameis Winston to return on a pay cut and back up Derek Carr. More depth along the defensive line, at linebacker, and at receiver is still needed, but that can all be addressed with time. Could they have matched some of these contract offers? Maybe, but it probably wouldn’t have been worth it. Better to stick to their price and rebuilt without breaking the bank.

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Lions renegotiate EDGE Romeo Okwara’s contract, open up cap room

The Detroit Lions renegotiate EDGE Romeo Okwara’s contract, opening up nearly $10 million in salary cap room for 2023

Another of the Detroit Lions’ offseason questions has been answered. The Lions and veteran EDGE Romeo Okwara have agreed to a contract renegotiation that reduces Okwara’s salary and frees up cap room for 2023.

According to Field Yates of ESPN, the Lions cut Okwara’s salary from $14.5 million to $5.647 million on Monday. Over The Cap breaks down the new contract like this:

  • $2 million base salary (down from $14.5 million)
  • $7 million signing bonus for the new contract, spread out evenly between 2023 and 2024, which is an added void year
  • $3.5 million in dead cap room for 2024
  • $500,000 roster bonus

The move effectively guarantees Okwara will be on the Lions roster, at least through the draft and early offseason. It would cost the Lions $1.35 million more to cut him prior to June 1st than it would to keep him on the active roster. After June 1st, the Lions would save a little under $2.15 million in cap room if they moved on from the seven-year vet, again per Over The Cap’s breakdown of the new contract structure.

It’s a similar move to how the Lions handled fellow veteran EDGE Charles Harris a week ago. Like Okwara, Harris accepted a lower contract to stick with Detroit and help the team free up cap space.

Breaking down the Lions free agency contract details

Here’s a quick look at the reported contracts for the Lions free agents

It’s been a busy week for the Detroit Lions in free agency. GM Brad Holmes and the Lions have brought in some outside free agents, as well as re-signing several of their own.

Here’s a quick look at the reported contracts for the Lions free agents, as listed by either Over The Cap, Spotrac or the NFLPA.

Here are contracts Chiefs can restructure to create salary cap space

A look at the contracts the #Chiefs can restructure to create salary cap space for the 2023 NFL offseason.

With the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine in the books, the Kansas City Chiefs now have a better idea of where they stand heading into a crucial juncture of the offseason. They’ve met with the representation of their key free agents and will be working hard to retain some of their players ahead of the start of the free agency period on March 15. In order to do so, however, they’ll need to clear some salary cap space. They have a number of different options to create salary cap space, including extending current contracts and releasing players from their contracts as well. Another option is to restructure contracts, converting base salary and/or roster bonus into a signing bonus. They can use this method with a number of different contracts, but doing so isn’t always the best option for the team.

Below you’ll find a quick look at the contracts that the Chiefs can restructure, an estimate of the maximum amount of cap space that can be cleared and an outlook on the likelihood of a restructure happening this offseason:

Jaguars QB C.J. Beathard’s new contract details, value revealed

C.J. Beathard new deal includes $1 million in incentives in each of the next two seasons.

The Jacksonville Jaguars don’t have much (or any right now) cap space to work with, but decided that keeping backup quarterback C.J. Beathard was a priority anyway.

On Friday, the team announced that it kept Beathard with a new contract, less than three weeks before the veteran quarterback was set to become a free agent.

According to the contract details reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the deal is more than affordable for the Jaguars.

The deal is only slightly less than the two-year, $5 million contract Beathard signed with the Jaguars during the 2021 offseason.

While the exact cap hit won’t be revealed until there’s a better idea of the displacement of the money over the next two seasons, the contract will be a minimal burden for the Jaguars, regardless.

There’s also a chance that Beathard won’t be on the roster in the fall, as the team recently added Canadian Football League star Nathan Rourke to compete for a backup role behind Trevor Lawrence.

In two seasons with the Jaguars, Beathard has only appeared a few times in clean up duty. He’s thrown just 13 passes with the Jaguars after previously starting 12 games in four seasons with the San Francisco 49ers.

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