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Ben Baby, ESPN Staff Writer
CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase stood in front of his locker and swayed back and forth as he pondered the most important aspect of his upcoming contract extension.
During the media session in January, Chase eventually settled on “up-front money” but later clarified it as guaranteed money. But the particulars are a bit trickier. When asked if he wanted that guaranteed cash stretched into the second year of a potential deal, the usually loquacious Chase zipped up.
“You’re going a little too far now, buddy,” Chase said with a slight smirk. “I gave you a little spice. Don’t take all of it.”
There was a reason for the line of questioning. Around the league, the Bengals are known for not giving players guaranteed money in the second year of a veteran contract.
It has become commonplace for top-tier players to have money guaranteed into the second, and even into the third year of a contract. The Minnesota Vikings are guaranteeing up to $25 million in the third year of Justin Jefferson’s recent contract extension. But the Bengals and Green Bay Packers are among a few teams that do not give guaranteed money to non-quarterbacks who sign veteran deals, according to contract details reviewed by ESPN through Roster Management System. However, both franchises mitigate that by providing a considerable amount of money in bonuses.
As Chase continues to pursue his new deal, whether he can break the Bengals’ salary structure will be worth watching. And any shifts will be notable for future negotiations.
“Somebody will be the first,” Bengals linebacker Germaine Pratt told ESPN.
Rick Spielman, who was the Minnesota Vikings general manager from 2012 to 2021, said any deviation by the Bengals with Chase would set a precedent.
“That’s your new business principle going forward, for the most part,” Spielman said. “Especially if you’re dealing with a Ja’Marr Chase-type talent.”
But if the Bengals refuse to budge on the guaranteed money after the first year, could that hinder a deal with Chase, who’s made the Pro Bowl each of his three seasons and helped the Bengals reach Super Bowl LVI?
“If you’re the only team that hasn’t adjusted their business principles, well then you’re going to have an issue,” Spielman said.
How an NFL contract is structured can reflect how much a team values a player. The less guaranteed money that exists in a deal, the easier it is for a team to release or waive a player, even if the contract is for multiple years.
“Everybody wants the up-front money, but they want something in Year 2, too,” Pratt said “(If) somebody has a down year after they got a contract or whatever the case may be, you still want some security about playing football.
“But unfortunately, the Bengals don’t do it, unless you’re a quarterback.”
When quarterback Joe Burrow got his record-breaking deal at the start of the 2023 season, $219 million of his $275 million was effectively guaranteed, according to data from Roster Management System. That included base salaries for the 2023, 2024 and 2025 seasons and also $90 million in option bonuses. The structure is similar to the deal Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts signed a few months before Burrow’s contract.
With executive vice president Katie Blackburn overseeing the salary cap, the Bengals have balanced cash spending with mitigating the risk that comes with guaranteed money. This year, Cincinnati is 13th in total cash spending, according to Roster Management System.
The Bengals also take pride in the low amount of “dead money” it has each year. Dead money is guaranteed money that counts against the salary cap for players who are no longer on the roster. This year, Cincinnati ranks fourth-lowest in that category at $6.5 million.
Spielman said he structured contracts in whatever way was necessary to sign a player and rarely received pushback from team ownership. Most notably, in 2018, Minnesota signed quarterback Kirk Cousins to an $84 million contract that was fully guaranteed.
But the Vikings also gave guaranteed money to other key players. When the team re-signed star running back Adrian Peterson in 2011, he received $36 million in assured cash that included payments after the first year.
One potential problem is other players may want the same salary structure, even if they’re not as productive as the star players getting guarantees.
“It gave us at least a leg to stand on in the negotiations,” Spielman said. “But all of a sudden if you start to waver from your business principle and do something different, well, you got a bunch of pissed off people — ‘You said this is how we do it.'”
One league source told ESPN the Bengals’ front office has bristled at the notion of changing its salary structure in negotiations. Another league source called it “an unreasonable approach to negotiations” in which Burrow was the exception.
Cincinnati has shown some contractual flexibility in recent years. In 2021, the Bengals used a void year to add some financial cap space to sign offensive tackle Riley Reiff, who started 12 games before suffering a season-ending ankle injury.
At the NFL combine in February, Bengals de facto general manager Duke Tobin said reasons for any shift in philosophy stem from different aspects: necessity, addressing an immediate need or just trying to get a deal across the finish line.
“It’s a negotiation for a reason,” Tobin said. “You have to negotiate. Some things we will do. Some things we won’t. Some things we don’t do very often.”
When safety Geno Stone signed a two-year deal with the Bengals this offseason, he said the team tacked on another year to the contract in addition to the $6 million guaranteed. That was enough for Stone to sign with Cincinnati on a deal worth a total of $14 million.
“I like it here,” Stone said. “I plan on being here as many years as I could be here for.”
In fact, the whole Bengals secondary serves as a case study.
When Vonn Bell signed with the Carolina Panthers in 2023 after three seasons with the Bengals, Carolina gave him $13 million in guaranteed on a three-year deal, with some of that on the books for his second year.
Only Bell never made it to the second year. Carolina, who finished a league-worst 2-14 last year, cut Bell and he signed with Cincinnati on a one-year deal with the Panthers still on the hook for his guaranteed money.
“If the season don’t go as well as you plan, and they go to the money guys and they ask you take a pay cut, it’s like ‘No,'” Bell said. “But you still have those guarantees in there that save you.”
What happened to former safety Nick Scott underscores that point. In 2023, the Bengals signed Scott to a three-year deal worth $12 million to replace Bell. Scott had $3 million in guaranteed money, which was all due for the first year. He was eventually benched, and despite signing a long-term deal, was released after the season.
That’s why the negotiations with Chase are particularly interesting. Dating back to last summer, Chase, who did not speak to reporters in June during mandatory minicamp, had eyed Jefferson as the benchmark for a potential extension. Jefferson’s four-year deal worth $140 million, including $110 million guaranteed, set a league record for non-quarterbacks.
At the team’s annual media luncheon on Monday, team executives lauded Chase’s importance to the franchise. Team president Mike Brown said the Bengals are willing to “bend over backwards” to get a deal done with Chase, even if that may not be likely before the start of the season. Tobin called Chase a “rare player,” a notable attribute when accounting for the upcoming deal and how it matches up with other contracts around the league.
“We’re aware of the numbers,” Tobin said. “We’re aware what other players have and we’re also aware of what we feel is right in what we can do with our team and what makes sense for us going forward.”
Throughout his first four years in Cincinnati, Chase has broken multiple team records, including the most receiving yards in a single season and a single game. If and when he receives an extension, any guaranteed money in the second year would set another unique mark in franchise history.