Real QB numbers not as big as advertised
It may look like a $40 million a year deal and sound like a $40 million a year deal, but that does not make it a $40 million a year deal. No one needs a calculator to determine that the four-year, $160 million contract Daniel Jones signed Tuesday night appears to be worth $40 million per year. All it takes is simple division to figure that out. The contracts of NFL players often tell a different tale than what is revealed in the publicized numbers, and this is indeed the case with the deal Jones received from the Giants.
Those agog and aghast, contending Jones is not worth $40 million per year, can exhale. None of the $47.5 million in Jones’ contract for 2026 — $46 million in base salary, $1 million in a roster bonus and $500,000 in a workout bonus — is guaranteed. That means the real deal for Jones is three years and $112.5 million. That is an average of $37.5 million — more in line with where many believed Jones’ true value sits.
“It’s funny money [in 2026] unless he actually earns it, and then he’ll more than likely deserve more,’’ a NFL player agent who has negotiated several high-end contracts told The Post.
That is the point. If Jones is playing at a high level after the 2025 season, there is every reason to believe the Giants will rip up the final year of his contract and give him a new one. If
Jones does not live up to expectations, the Giants can part ways with Jones after three years.
Jones’ deal includes $82 million in guaranteed money and $12 million more in “practical’’ guarantees he is very likely to earn. Jones gets a signing bonus of $36 million. His base salaries of $9.5 million in 2023 and $35.5 million in 2024 are both fully guaranteed. There are $500,000 workout bonuses sprinkled in, which is fairly standard. There are also $35 million in incentives for Jones to shoot for.
Jones changed agents at the start of the negotiating process, moving from CAA to Athletes First.
“Athletes First got the same deal CAA would have done or with anybody else,’’ the player agent said. “Daniel Jones would have gotten a similar deal on his own. I’m not putting the agents down, I’m sure they structured it correctly and did a lot of good legwork into it, but this was a pretty easy deal to do. My guess is the Giants wanted it to be much more longer term.’’
It is believed the Giants wanted to secure Jones with a five-year deal. Going down to four years is likely a concession the Giants had to make. As for the concessions Jones’ camp had to make, the agent said “the guarantees are probably not as great as they like to brag about, and they didn’t actually get 40 [per year]. They didn’t get it.’’
The final analysis?
“It’s a good deal for both sides,’’ the agent said. “Daniel Jones is probably overpaid. If they cut him after three years, it’s $37.5 [million] a year. Is that valuation a good one or a bad one? I don’t think it’s a terrible valuation for Daniel.’’