During training camp last year, the Detroit Lions had trouble identifying a third starting wide receiver. The conflict between Daurice Fountain, Donovan Peoples-Jones, and Antoine Green ended in failure, leaving Detroit to scramble among the cuts made by other teams for a solution.
Tim Patrick, a former Broncos receiver, fell into their lap at that moment, and the outcome couldn’t have been more favorable. He was only targeted 44 times in 16 games, so the Lions didn’t need him to earn a high target share, but he was still a vital component of the attack. In addition to being a willing and competent blocker in the run game, he provided Jared Goff with a large target.
Last year, Patrick played on the veteran minimum salary for the Lions ($1.125 million) due to his extensive injury history. It was a huge bargain for a starter at a premium position. And while Patrick is getting a raise this year after re-signing with the Lions, he remains a huge discount for Detroit.
Originally described as a one-year contract worth up to $4 million, Patrick’s contract is actually just a one-year, $2.5 million deal. Here’s a breakdown of the numbers
Otherwise, the deal’s structure couldn’t be more straightforward. a signing bonus that effectively doubles his income, along with a base salary that is completely guaranteed (at the veteran minimum). Although Patrick isn’t guaranteed his current salary, there isn’t much of an incentive to let him go because Detroit won’t save any money if they cut him.
With more over $31.5 million in cap space allocated to wide receivers, the Lions are still paying the tenth most at the position in spite of the individual discounts. That makes sense, though, given that they have an All-Pro returner and two receivers who are arguably in the top 20.
Fantastic resignation. We are under a lot of pressure to consistently identify quality players because of Holmes’ tendency to sign one-year contracts with veterans, which is a wonderful way to manage the cap. I’m not too concerned because I assume we’re discussing WR3/WR4 and other depth players.
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The fifth year on Jamo will be picked up by Brad. Given the large contracts that wide receivers are receiving, the Lions think 15 million to be a good bargain. In another year, it will appear inexpensive. But I believe they let Jamo finish that fifth year and then reassess before extending.
Your window for winning a championship gets smaller with each restructuring… A player will only agree to a restructure if they are guaranteed the same amount of money or more, or if they fear termination under their current deal. Let’s just assume that Goff, ARSB, and Sewell won’t be cut. Extensions become more difficult each time you guarantee more money. Converting non-guaranteed cash to guaranteed cash and, of course, adding years is the team leverage in extensions. Additionally, it makes it more difficult to let go of players when their contracts expire since that guaranteed money becomes dead cap space. Restructuring is and usually ought to be considered a last resort.
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