A Quick Lesson On NFL Contract Incentives
March 16th, 2023
Joe knows fans see new Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield officially having a $4 million salary plus more than double that total in incentives, and they quickly assume scoring the incentives is a reach, a fat carrot dangled by the team.
In reality, that’s not how it works.
NFL contract incentives, if earned, count against the following season’s salary cap. And there are rules tied to what those incentives can be.
The restrictions prevent teams from bypassing the spirit of the cap, so a club can’t give a guy a $10 million salary and $25 million in ridiculously attainable incentives. ‘Hey, Ryan Succop, we’ll rework your contract to give you the league minimum plus $4 million if you make 10 field goals over 30 yards.’ That’s not kosher.
Incentives have to represent an achievement greater than what the player had in the prior season. And since Mayfield didn’t do much last season with the Panthers and Rams combined, Joe suspects Mayfield has easy incentives in his new deal with the Bucs.
As in he would score nearly all the money if he wins the starting job and at least plays like Mike Glennon did in 2013 — 2600-plus yards, 19 touchdowns in 14 starts.
Of course, that means Mayfield must win the starting job, which he probably already did when he hung up the phone with the Bucs.
March 16th, 2023 at 9:24 am
We enter The Mayfield Zone. Cheap tix in the parking lot pre game from all those saps who got 2 year season tickets.
March 16th, 2023 at 9:28 am
Grover, as usual you are behind the times. The days of cheap tickets in the parking lot have been over for quite some time. Everything is electronic now. You need a smartphone to get in the stadium. Which means you need to upgrade that Jitterbug pronto.
March 16th, 2023 at 9:42 am
Looks like we are starting to pound the 2024 cap
March 16th, 2023 at 9:47 am
The more I see, the more I think Jason Licht knows exactly what he is doing.
March 16th, 2023 at 9:57 am
Do those parking lot tickets come with absurd fees from Ticketmaster?
March 16th, 2023 at 10:57 am
Even if we have to pay the whole $8 mil it’s worth it if we win the division.
March 16th, 2023 at 12:06 pm
Hiring a quarterback that just got fired by another team is risky, but the risk involved in hiring a quarterback that has been fired by his last three teams in the last two years is right up there with the charge of the Light Brigade , Custer’s last stand , and Russia’s attack on Ukraine, ( The surest sign of insanity is doing the same thing again and again and expecting different results ).
March 16th, 2023 at 12:22 pm
4 million just to kick the tires…meh…I’m in.
Hopefully Trask does fully get his chance to compete.
Beggars can’t be choosers when your team is in cap hell.
Goo Bucs!!!
March 16th, 2023 at 12:46 pm
The guy? His guy is 5’8″ and has only had 1 winning season in his NFL career. maybe a backup or average starter, but the guy? Seriously? last year blaine was his guy. After Bardy retired Trask was his guy. It just seems like everyone at the Bucs lies about everything. I am so sick of it. It’s like watching FOX news. Lie after lie after lie.
March 16th, 2023 at 1:20 pm
Will Mayfield be introduced at a news conference? That would be telling.
March 16th, 2023 at 2:15 pm
If I were Trask, I would ask for a trade.
March 16th, 2023 at 2:31 pm
Trashk asking for a trade is a funny idea. Trades require two parties, one willing to give something in return for acquiring him. Who wants the second coming of Rudy Carpenter? And what is a trade partner going to offer? Maybe a headless chicken, to compete with Joe Tryon Showinsky?
March 16th, 2023 at 2:33 pm
Great article
March 16th, 2023 at 2:39 pm
Or a release. Whatever. I would not want to play for a team that keeps stabbing me in the back.
March 16th, 2023 at 3:16 pm
Incentives for Mayfield may or likely include:
– X amount for each game he starts ($100-200k?)
– Hitting certain stat goals like 65% completions or 25 TDs or 3500 yards, etc
– Post season starts
– Pro Bowl honors
Stuff like that…….
March 17th, 2023 at 8:11 am
“which he probably already did ” and you get this knowledge from whom or do you just want this To be the case. Come on guys … REALLY?!?
March 19th, 2023 at 5:25 pm
Mayfield will not get to those incentives while holding a clipboard on the sidelines all year watching Trask. It’s a 4mil contract.