"@DAButler56: @EddieRoyalWR haha preciate u restructuring urs for me bruh!" Worked out for the both of us congrats tho u deserve it
— Eddie Royal (@EddieRoyalWR) March 4, 2014
Yesterday, we saw this back and forth between San Diego Chargers LB Donald Butler, who recently signed a 7-year contract extension with the team, and WR Eddie Royal.
Royal, who was heading into the final year of a 3-year deal, was a prime candidate for the chopping block. Here's what I said back in January:
Eddie is owed $6 million in the final year of his deal, but would cost just $1.5 million against the cap if released. He was about as a good of a slot receiver as there was in the league last year, and he seems to be a favorite of head coach Mike McCoy, so I would expect him to renegotiate this deal. That'll add a few years to it (which helps Royal) and make it more cap-friendly in 2014 (which helps the team).
I was almost right! Michael Gehlken has some details, but not much:
Royal was previously set to earn $4.5 million in base salary with a $6 million cap number. Both numbers have been lowered. The salary was reduced to a fully guaranteed total, and performance incentives were added to help make up the difference.
Less money, but more guaranteed. That seems like a sweet deal for the Chargers, who want more cap space, and a sweet deal for Royal, who gets injured often. No extra years tacked on at the end, which is probably a sign of something, but I wouldn't worry about it.