Omitted from the news regarding the new contract obtained by running back Jamaal Charles from the Chiefs was the amount of the four-year, $28 million contract that is guaranteed.
It was possibly omitted because it wasn’t an eye-popping number.
Per a league source, only the first year of the deal is guaranteed, which it would have been as of Week One of the regular season anyway. The total amount is $8.3 million, a dramatic increase in the $3.9 million Charles was due to earn in 2014.
Nothing beyond 2014 is guaranteed. So if the Chiefs were to cut Charles after this season, he’d hit the market with $8.3 million in his pocket from the upcoming season.
Charles probably could have given up some of the total dollars in exchange for getting some injury-only guarantees in future years. But why bother? The money only gets paid in the event of a serious injury. For what the player would have to sacrifice by way of salary, it makes more sense in some situations to simply buy a disability policy.