Christian Watson signs a 4 year 110m extension

[OldSchool101]

The details are out! Not a bad deal at all I'd say.

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Good stuff as earlier I wrote up a more gradual Cap hit formula. Like
$8-10mil year 2027, $14-18mil year 2028 and then closed to his AAV in 2029 with a likely restructure long before 2030. It’s still a contract out after year 2 of the extension of as Rodgers would label it a 1-2-1-1
when his guar was mostly expended. This one is a little heavier at $24mil in 2028 which is surprising. They decided to go with the spike in 2027, which I thought would be 2028.

 

[tynimiller]

Good stuff as earlier I wrote up a more gradual Cap hit formula. Like
$8-10mil year 2027, $14-18mil year 2028 and then closed to his AAV in 2029 with a likely restructure long before 2030. It’s still a contract out after year 2 of the extension of as Rodgers would label it a 1-2-1-1
when his guar was mostly expended. This one is a little heavier at $24mil in 2028 which is surprising. They decided to go with the spike in 2027, which I thought would be 2028.

The spike that year though is massively tied to his health given $13M of it is that roster bonus. If he doesn't prove to be healthy we walk from him prior to that hitting and save that $13M

 

[OldSchool101]

The spike that year though is massively tied to his health given $13M of it is that roster bonus. If he doesn't prove to be healthy we walk from him prior to that hitting and save that $13M

Yeah that makes sense @tynimiller. That higher Cap jump in strategy 100% puts added pressure on Watson to stay healthy and on his game. Obviously he gas plenty of time to showcase that with 2026-2027 locked. I suppose call it a “hard contract out” in 2028 if things look dicey etc.

 

[tynimiller]

Yeah that makes sense @tynimiller. That higher Cap jump in strategy 100% puts added pressure on Watson to stay healthy and on his game. Obviously he gas plenty of time to showcase that with 2026-2027 locked. I suppose call it a “hard contract out” in 2028 if things look dicey etc.

Yeah but all he has to do is essentially be who has been while out there and do it at a I'd say 14 or more game clip next two seasons and that bonus is easily deserved to market. Love how both sides did that deal.

 

[OldSchool101]

Yeah but all he has to do is essentially be who has been while out there and do it at a I'd say 14 or more game clip next two seasons and that bonus is easily deserved to market. Love how both sides did that deal.

One thing is for sure. If he can stay on that field for 14-17 games instead of his current pace of 12 games, his $$ is actually very fair. If I read that correctly? His Cap hits look to be around $18Mil annual if averaged across 2027-2028 or $15mil per season Cap hit if we include his existing contract (2026-2028)

 

[Heyjoe4]

The spike that year though is massively tied to his health given $13M of it is that roster bonus. If he doesn't prove to be healthy we walk from him prior to that hitting and save that $13M

Good catch.

The $31 mil signing bonus will be part of the cap for the duration of the contract. Is that correct? I don't have a good sense for what these contracts really mean when it comes to cap.

Making $13 mil of the contract a roster bonus, as you note, is a good idea for a guy with an injury history. Although FWIW, I'm not concerned that CW has a chronic health problem, like his hamstrings - anymore. He did miss a lot of time for that. The ACL and the shoulder injury last year can and do happen to anyone.

I'm not convinced he's an "injury prone" player. But the $13 mil roster bonus is like insurance, and smart.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Yeah but all he has to do is essentially be who has been while out there and do it at a I'd say 14 or more game clip next two seasons and that bonus is easily deserved to market. Love how both sides did that deal.

It really is a good deal. I think Watson's presence is what makes this offense go. Love is certainly an important part as well, but Watson has the ability to score anytime (with Love's assistance noted). I'm glad he got a deal done.

 

[Heyjoe4]

The details are out! Not a bad deal at all I'd say.

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I thought this was a realistic deal for Watson and the Packers. It would have been different had Watson not lost so much time to soft tissue injury - specifically, hamstrings. But he seemed to find and correct the source for that (leg-strength discrepancy) and I expect a lot of production from him in the years ahead.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

The $31 mil signing bonus will be part of the cap for the duration of the contract. Is that correct? I don't have a good sense for what these contracts really mean when it comes to cap.

Think of it this way. Any guaranteed money is just that, guaranteed and thus has to be accounted for on the teams cap, within the cap rules of the NFL. NFL guaranteed money can be applied to base salaries, signing bonuses, option bonuses, workout bonuses, and roster bonuses. What it is applied to, is spelled out in each contract.

But the $13 mil roster bonus is like insurance, and smart.

Yes, but that is only for 2028 and occurs on the 3rd league day in March of 2028.

Why do NFL teams do "Roster Bonuses in March"?

NFL teams use the 3rd league day to trigger roster bonuses because it creates a hard deadline for player evaluation before the heavy wave of free agency begins. Paying the bonus locks the player in for the year, so teams use this date for two main reasons:

• Evaluate Free Agency Options: The new league year kicks off when free agency opens. If a team wants to cut an expensive, aging, or underperforming player to clear cap space to sign replacements, they must release them before the roster bonus triggers.
• Avoid Unnecessary Cap Hits: If a team keeps a player on the roster past this date, the bonus is fully earned and counts entirely against that season's salary cap. By releasing or restructuring them before the 3rd day, teams can prevent "dead money" and free up cash.

 

[mradtke66]

Good catch.

The $31 mil signing bonus will be part of the cap for the duration of the contract. Is that correct? I don't have a good sense for what these contracts really mean when it comes to cap.

The whole point of a signing bonus is cash today, cap impact amortized over the life of the contract. It's slightly fuzzier than that, but you can just think 31m/5 years and ta-da, but that really is enough for us lay people. As he still had 1 year left on his existing contract, it appears this is an extension.

For void years, they just change the demoninator of the math. If Watson had 1 year of void on his deal, the team could amortize the bonus 31m/6 years, lowering it from ~7.4m to 5.1m, at the cost of having to take the last 5.1m hit the year after his contract expires (after year 5, as 6 would void.)

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

The whole point of a signing bonus is cash today

Just curious. When I first joined the forum in like 2012, I only got a $500K signing bonus. What did the rest of you get?

 

[SudsMcBucky]

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[mradtke66]

Just curious. When I first joined the forum in like 2012, I only got a $500K signing bonus. What did the rest of you get?

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tenor.com

 

[Firethorn1001]

ust curious. When I first joined the forum in like 2012, I only got a $500K signing bonus. What did the rest of you get?

One of those 50 cent McDonalds gift certificates