San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman didn’t make the Pro Bowl, and now, he might be taking a serious financial hit.
ProFootballTalk reported the following Wednesday:
Sherman’s contract with the 49ers carries a $1 million Pro-Bowl bonus. Obviously, he won’t get that money unless he makes the NFC Pro Bowl roster. (Per a league source, Sherman also isn’t an alternate.)
If Sherman had made it to the Pro Bowl, he also would have seen his base salary for 2019 increase by $1 million, and his per-game roster bonuses would have dropped from $2 million to $1 million. So Sherman can still make the extra $1 million ($2 million total) by appearing in every game next year.
First, however, he’ll have to be on the 49ers roster in 2019. By not making the Pro Bowl, his base salary for 2019 remains non-guaranteed.
The biggest issue here for Sherman isn’t that he lost out on $1 million dollars for not making the Pro Bowl. It’s the fact now the rest of his deal isn’t guaranteed. That’s what he should be worried about.
The 49ers can now dump him without any kind of financial obligation. Generally speaking, NFL teams don’t like to keep guys once they’re done paying them any guaranteed money. (RELATED: Here Are The Best Moments From Week 15 Of The NFL Season)
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There had been some criticism of Sherman’s deal when he signed it, and now the critics look more than justified.
I simply don’t understand why you’d tie your future to a team and guaranteed money to a Pro Bowl selection. That is beyond me.
You’d think that a player would want his money to become guaranteed by stats or wins. Something that he can point to as his own accomplishment. Tying it to the Pro Bowl seems way too risky.
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If the Seahawks do decide to part ways with Sherman, I doubt he’d struggle to find a new team. He’s certainly on the tail end of his career, but the electric cornerback is still very talented.
I guess we’ll just have to wait to see how it all shakes out. Either way, I’d recommend Sherman not tie future earnings to the Pro Bowl. It clearly didn’t work out for him this time.