Mike Klis has shared the details about the new contract Demaryius Thomas signed.
The breakdown from Klis’ report:
2015: $22 million. He will receive an $11 million signing bonus, $6.5 million in roster bonus and a $4.5 million salary. All $22 million is fully guaranteed.
2016: $13 million salary, fully guaranteed.
2017: $8.5 million salary, guaranteed against injury. The full salary becomes fully guaranteed early in the league year.
2018: $12.5 million. It includes a $4 million option, plus an $8.5 million salary. None of this money is guaranteed.
2019: $14 million salary, not guaranteed.
I will have more thoughts in my Musings later tonight.
ADDENDUM (Nick): If Klis’s figures are accurate, this is how the contract would look in salary cap terms. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun also provided more details on July 17.
| Base Salary | Prorated Bonus | Roster Bonus | Cap Number |
Dead Money* (pre-June 1 cut) | Cap Savings* (pre-June 1 cut) | |
| 2015 | $4,500,000 | $2,200,000 | $6,500,000 | $13,200,000 | $35,000,000 | ($21,800,000) |
| 2016 | $13,000,000 | $2,200,000 | $15,200,000 | $21,800,000 | ($6,600,000) | |
| 2017 | $8,500,000* | $3,533,333 | $12,033,333 | $15,100,000 | ($4,400,000) | |
| 2018^ | $8,500,000 | $3,533,333 | $12,033,333 | $7,066,667 | $4,966,667 | |
| 2019^ | $14,000,000 | $3,533,333 | $17,533,333 | $3,533,333 | $14,000,000 |
*2017’s base salary is included in dead money only for that year, as the Broncos would presumably cut Thomas before February 17 if they did so in 2016.
^The Broncos must exercise an option in 2017 to continue these years, and doing so should mandate that a $4 million option bonus be paid to Thomas, prorated from 2017-2019. Declining the option should make Thomas a UFA in 2018 that qualifies for the compensatory pick formula.
(more from Nick beyond the fold)
First of all, take particular note of Thomas’s 2015 cap number. It is less than $400,000 shy of the $12.823M franchise tender that the Broncos had to carry against their 2015 cap before this deal took place. This is an indication that the Broncos are perfectly content with the approximate $7 million in cap space that they have right now. Given that Dez Bryant reportedly got a $20 million signing bonus, the Cowboys are likely not as content, and want to kick some of that into the future (as is their habit).
Second, as you can see from the dead money, the Broncos have committed themselves to having Thomas as their featured receiving target for the next three seasons, as parting ways with him then would incur a net cap loss. But the opposite is true for 2018 and 2019, when major cap savings would be gained. This is a very sharp cleave, and indicates that this is a very hard three-year extension, with very soft options for fourth and fifth years.
My intention is to just lay out facts with this addendum. I’ll save my opinion in comments for Bob’s Musings later tonight–stay tuned.
