The Pittsburgh Steelers re-signed defensive tackle Daniel McCullers to a one-year contract on Thursday and as expected, it’s a minimum salary benefit deal that comes with a reduced salary cap charge. His deal, however, did include the maximum signing bonus for such a qualifying deal and that amount is $90,000, according to the latest NFLPA update.
McCullers is scheduled to earn a base salary of $790,000 in 2018. Being as McCullers is a player with four or more years of NFL experience and he was given the minimum salary for his accrued years in the league, his contract qualifies for the minimum salary benefit in the CBA.
As part of the minimum salary benefit provision in the CBA, McCullers’ 2018 salary cap charge will be $720,000, which is the minimum base salary a player with two accrued seasons can earn in 2018 ($630,000) plus the $90,000 signing bonus he was given. McCullers, however, stands to earn $880,000 in 2018 if he makes and stays on the final 53 man roster all season. Should the Steelers cut him, there will only be a $90,000 dead money charge associated with such a move.
In short, the Steelers used just $240,000 of their available salary cap space to sign McCullers as the defensive tackle displaces a player with a cap charge of $480,000 that was in the top 51 salaries of players currently under contract for the 2017 season.
According to the NFLPA, the Steelers are now $3,166,080 under the salary cap with all moves to date accounted for.
Contract Details For Steelers DT Daniel McCullers
| YEAR | BASE SALARY | SIGNING BONUS | ROSTER BONUS | CAP CHARGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | $790,000 | $90,000 | $0 | $720,000 |
