The Pittsburgh Steelers signed cornerback Joe Haden to a three-year, $27 million contract on Wednesday and now we know the full layout of the deal.
According to Albert Breer, the Steelers gave Haden a $5.75 million signing bonus as part of the deal. His 2017 base salary will be $1.25 million and that means he’ll earn $7 million this year. His cap charge in 2017 will be just $3.166666 million.
In 2018, Haden will be due a $1 million roster bonus in March. If he winds up still being with the team at that point, he’ll be scheduled to earn a base salary of $9 million in 2018. His 2019 base salary is scheduled to be $10 million.
In essence, this is a one-year, $7 million contract for Haden with the right to earn the rest. The Steelers will clearly decide what his future will be by March. With that said, even if they pay the one million roster bonus in March, they can still cut him prior to the 2018 regular season starting without much invested in him and just short of $4 million in dead money to account for over two years.
Below is a layout of Haden’s contract by year:
| YEAR | BASE SALARY | SIGNING BONUS | ROSTER BONUS | CAP CHARGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $1,250,000 | $1,916,666 | $0 | $3,166,666 |
| 2018 | $9,000,000 | $1,916,666 | $1,000,000 | $11,916,666 |
| 2019 | $10,000,000 | $1,916,668 | $0 | $11,916,668 |
