The Chicago Bears front office is one of the best at structuring contracts to minimize their risk and limit the impact on their salary cap space.
Ryan Pace and cap guru Joey Lane did it again with contract extension for right tackle Bobby Massie, which turned out to be a five-year, $40 million deal according to the Chicago Tribune.
His average yearly salary of $8 million will make him the fifth-highest paid right tackle in 2019.
On the surface, it might look like a significant investment in a somewhat inconsistent offensive lineman who turns 30 before the 2019 season, but the key number is the $15.8 million guaranteed which gives Pace plenty of flexibility to move on from the contract before its done.
Plus, his salary and cap hit in the first year of the contract is only $3.8 million, according to the report.
Nearly $12 million of the guaranteed money is paid out in the first two years of the contract, and Massie only has $1.3 million guaranteed to him in each of the final three years of the five-year deal.
So the contract essentially has two years guaranteed and the final three years all become team options where the Bears can release him with little penalty or keep him around and pay him $8 million each year.
The extension looks like a win for both sides, giving Massie a market-rate salary and some stability while leaving cap flexibility for Pace without locking him in for too long.
