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Austin Jackson had a hard time finding a home on the Dolphins offensive line during his first three NFL seasons. Jackson, the 18th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, struggled playing left tackle, his college position, as a rookie. Shifting Jackson to left guard in 2021 was a failed experiment. The plan in 2022 was to see if Jackson would fare better at right tackle but an ankle injury limited him to two games.
It was a no-brainer for the Dolphins to decline a fifth-year option on Jackson in 2024 for a fully guaranteed $14.175 million based on his first three NFL seasons. More of the same was likely going to have Jackson looking to be a swing tackle in 2024 free agency. A healthy Jackson, providing stability at right tackle this season, led to the Dolphins signing him to a three-year, $36 million contract extension, averaging $12 million per year with $20 million of guarantees, in early December.
As Jackson can attest, fortunes can be made because of performance in a contract year. With the NFL regular season coming to a close, here are several players who have made good use of their contract year. A key contract benchmark and the probability of hitting this financial target ranging from one dollar sign to four dollars signs are listed for each player.
Financial benchmark: Geno Smith ($25 million avg./$40 million in guarantees/3 years worth up to $105 million with incentives and/or salary escalators)Probability: $$$
The Buccaneers weren’t expected to be in contention for a fourth straight playoff berth with Mayfield taking over for a retiring Tom Brady at quarterback. Beating the Panthers in the regular-season finale will give the Buccaneers a third consecutive NFC South title and a 9-8 record.
Mayfield signed a fully guaranteed one-year, $4 million deal, worth up to $8.5 million through incentives, with the Buccaneers in March after a 2022 campaign in which his subpar play was an…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/agents-take-buccaneers-baker-mayfield-tops-players-making-best-use-of-a-contract-year/
Author : Joel Corry
Publish date : 2024-01-03 19:14:17
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