Remember when Colin Kaepernick signed a six-year, $126 million contract extension with the San Francisco 49ers? That averages out to $21 million per season, but the reality is that the structure of NFL contracts means the heart of the contract is the guaranteed money. Kaepernick can now be released following this year at a minimal dead money hit, and such will assuredly be the case.
As a result, Kaepernick’s name won’t be on this list. After all, the Niners are barely tied to him going forward, which allows them to either engage in a bidding war for Tony Romo or draft a first-round quarterback (or both). But the following 10 players will hold their teams back in the foreseeable future. For reasons such as poor play, injuries, or other factors, they warrant a spot on the list of the 10 worst contracts in the National Football League.
All contract values are per Spotrac.com.
10. Coby Fleener, TE, New Orleans Saints
Coby Fleener’s contract is just one in a long line of questionable deals the New Orleans Saints’ organization has dished out in recent years. Fleener’s five-year, $36 million deal contains $18 million in guaranteed money, likely locking Fleener in through at least the 2018 season. Yet Fleener’s impact on this year’s Saints team has been disappointing – he’s topped 50 yards in a game just twice, and he’s currently 16th among tight ends in yards (402) and 19th in receptions (33). This is despite playing in an offense that passes the ball 40-45 times per game on a regular basis.
9. Vinny Curry, DE, Philadelphia Eagles
It was a curious decision by GM Howie Roseman to pay Vinny Curry so much money before this season, considering Curry was strictly a pass-rushing specialist who had never started an NFL game before. Curry’s five-year, $47.25 million contract suggested he would be a regular contributor in new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s 4-3 scheme, but such as hasn’t been the case in 2016. Curry is buried on the depth chart behind Brandon Graham and Connor Barwin, and he’s registered just 1.5 sacks and nine tackles in 10 appearances. Graham has stolen the show as the Eagles’ best pass-rusher, and Barwin has been a fine player as well. Curry will need to make a much bigger impact to stay on this roster beyond the 2017 campaign.
8. Charles Clay, TE, Buffalo Bills
It was a surprising move when the Buffalo Bills gave Charles Clay a five-year, $38 million deal prior to the 2015 campaign, and so far, the organization hasn’t reaped the rewards of it. Clay posted a mediocre 51/528/3 receiving statline a year ago, and so far, he’s failed to secure a touchdown grab in 2016. Clay is 18th among tight ends in receptions (34) and 23rd in yards (306). Over the last four weeks, he’s recorded just 67 total yards. Clay is locked in for $6 million this year, $9 million in 2017, and $9 million in 2018. Even if he’s released prior to 2019, the Bills still owe $4.5 million in a dead money cap hit.
7. Tavon Austin, WR, Los Angeles Rams
The (then) St. Louis Rams traded up to get Tavon Austin in the first round of the 2013 NFL draft, but never really figured out a way to make him a regular part of their offense. That didn’t stop GM Les Snead from extending Austin to a four-year, $42 million deal this past offseason– an extension you would expect for a prototypical No. 1 wide receiver, not a player who needs to be manufactured touches to seemingly make an impact on the offense. This year, Austin is tied for 33rd in targets (75), 57th in receptions (40), and just 96th in receiving yards (356). He’s scored just twice all year. He hasn’t even made an impact on punt returns, as he’s averaging just 8.0 yards per return. Austin has been all but invisible during the Rams’ last three games – he’s totaled 76 yards from scrimmage, as the Rams have averaged 9.7 points per contest. Austin is locked in for the 2017 season at a ridiculous $15 million cap hit; mercifully, he can be released before 2018 at a zero dead money hit. Barring an unforeseen increase in his production, expect Austin to be elsewhere in two years.
6. Ryan Tannehill, QB, Miami Dolphins
Such is the current state of the NFL that even mediocre quarterbacks get paid handsomely. Ryan Tannehill is a mediocre quarterback, and yet he’s working on a four-year, $77 million contract extension that pays him close to $20 million per season. Under new head coach Adam Gase, Tannehill has seen improvement, as he’s on pace for career highs in 2016 in completion percentage (65.9), yards per attempt (7.7), and ANY/A (6.18). He still absorbs too many sacks and he has yet to take Miami to the playoffs, and the second needs to change to justify that kind of a contract. If he can get the 6-4 Dolphins into the postseason, his contract doesn’t look so bad. But for now, he hasn’t proven he’s worth that kind of money.
5. Tony Romo, QB, Dallas Cowboys
You all know the Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback situation by now. Rookie phenom Dak Prescott has stolen the job, meaning Tony Romo will have to either 1) be a highly-paid backup 2) accept a trade somewhere or 3) retire. He’s not going to be a backup, and I doubt he retires, so it’s probably going to be option #2. His current contract is set to pay him $24.7 million in 2017 and $25.2 million in 2018, and even if the Cowboys trade him, they’re still going to absorb about a $20 million dead cap hit to move on from him.
4. Jairus Byrd, FS, New Orleans Saints
When he was with the Buffalo Bills, Jairus Byrd was one of the most electrifying ballhawking safeties in the NFL. He recorded 22 interceptions and five fumble recoveries in his first five seasons, making a trifecta of Pro Bowls. The Bills let him walk in free agency – and it’s safe to say this was a tremendous move by the organization. Byrd signed a massive six-year, $54 million deal with the New Orleans Saints, and the Saints needed him to shore up a defense that was historically bad in 2012 and 2013. That hasn’t happened though, as Byrd suffered a season-ending knee injury in 2014, and has struggled to stay on the field throughout his whole tenure with the Saints. He was a healthy scratch earlier this season with San Diego, and ranks by PFF as just the 57th best safety among 86 qualifiers in 2016. Byrd isn’t making big plays – just one total interception in 27 games with the team – and yet the team still owes him $10.9 million for this year and another $11.7 million in 2017. If the Saints release Byrd before 2018, there’s still a $4.6 million dead money hit, so that means the Saints will end up paying Byrd over $35 million for a limited impact defensively.
3. Brock Osweiler, QB, Houston Texans
How much did the Houston Texans want to move on from Brian Hoyer and his playoff disaster last January (four interceptions, two fumbles, a 30-0 shutout loss)? They paid Brock Osweiler $72 million despite never having actually met him in person. To be fair, the four-year, $72 million contract is really a two-year, $37 million deal that the Texans can get out of after 2017. But that’s enough in itself to put Osweiler on the list of worst contracts. The team has paid $12 million this year for a quarterback who ranks second-last in adjusted net yards per passing attempt, and they’ll pay $19 million for his services next year. When they get a chance to mercifully release him before ’18, Houston will still owe $6 million in dead money. Meanwhile, the quarterback they got rid of – Hoyer – posted a 98.0 passer rating and impressive 7.58 ANY/A in five starts in 2016. Hoyer broke his arm and missed half the season, but still, wouldn’t you much rather have Hoyer’s production for $2 million than Osweiler’s for $12 million?
2. Ndamukong Suh, DT, Miami Dolphins
Ndamukong Suh is a dominant defensive tackle, and likely a future Hall of Famer. Suh has never missed a game due to injury, and he’s a top-five player at his position annually. So it’s not as if the Dolphins are paying top dollar for a middling talent. The issue is that he’s 29 years old and locked on for another three seasons – minimum – at star quarterback money. Can the Dolphins afford to pay a below-average quarterback in Ryan Tannehill $20 million per season plus what they’ll be committing to Suh? It does a wonder to the salary cap, and limits what the organization can do in free agency. Unless the team restructures Suh’s deal, he’ll take up $26.1 million in 2018 and $28.1 million in 2019 – no defensive player has ever been paid that much in one season.
1. Joe Flacco, QB, Baltimore Ravens
At this point in his career, Joe Flacco is far removed from being the quarterback who took the world by surprise in winning the 2012 Super Bowl. That incredible four-game postseason stretch earned Flacco a nine-figure contract, one that will keep him in Baltimore through the rest of the decade at least. Since then, Flacco’s numbers aren’t even mediocre; they’re downright embarrassing.
Of 26 qualifying passers since ’13, Flacco ranks last in touchdown percentage (3.50), second-last in ANY/A (5.47) and passer rating (81.6), and third-last in yards per attempt (6.68). By comparison, those numbers trail middling passers such as Colin Kaepernick, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Sam Bradford, and Brian Hoyer. The difference is those quarterbacks – with the exception of Kaepernick – aren’t killing their team’s salary cap, and Kaepernick will be released after this season.
The Ravens are locked in to Flacco for at least three more seasons. He’s 31 years old now and being paid $22.55 million; he’ll follow that up by counting for $24.55 million against the team’s salary cap in 2017, $24.75 million in 2018, and $26.5 million in 2019. Even if the Ravens release him before the 2020 season – by which point Flacco will be a 35-year-old quarterback eight years removed from a Super Bowl ring – they’ll still have to pay $8 million in dead money.
It’s the price you pay when a quarterback wins a Super Bowl, and there would have been a public outcry if Baltimore had allowed Joe Flacco to walk in free agency. But it’s a shame the organization is hampered so much by Flacco’s contract, and his continued declining play. When you’re all of a sudden taking up $20-plus million per year, there’s no room to re-sign Anquan Boldin or Kelechi Osemele or Haloti Ngata. It puts more pressure on the quarterback, and unfortunately for Baltimore, they’re getting replacement-level production from Flacco at the price of the worst contract in pro football.
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