“Up to” continues to be the most valuable phrase for the Lords of Scooptown.
This year, agents have leaked — and insiders have parroted without scrutiny — the puffed up value of contracts without separating actual value from incentives. The numbers getting slapped together and, voila!
“Up to.”
Most recently, NFL Media initially reported the one-year Odell Beckham Jr. deal in Miami as being worth “up to” $8.25 million. Looks good.
Since then, ESPN.com has separated the base value ($3 million) from the upside of $5.25 million.
The specifics required to reach the incentives aren’t yet known. Last year, Beckham had a reasonable $3 million incentive package on a one-year, $15 million deal with the Ravens. (He earned an extra $1 million.)
It’s a steep drop for Beckham from $16 million to $3 million. Time will tell whether he’s got a realistic shot to get to $8.25 million.