The new contract given by the Bills to quarterback Tyrod Taylor, with a reported value of $30.5 million over two years, can be worth up to $34.5 million. If it happens, it won’t directly arise from things Taylor specifically does on the field. But his performance will definitely have at least an indirect impact on the achievement of an extra $2 million each year.
Per a source with knowledge of the contract, Taylor makes another $500,000 if the Bills make it to the divisional round of the playoffs in 2017. The total moves to $1 million with a berth in the AFC title game. The full $2 million becomes earned if the Bills make it to the Super Bowl. The same package of incentives applies to 2018.
In the unlikely event that Taylor reaches the full $4 million, he’ll necessarily unlock millions more via his next contract, since it will mean he’s hitting the market after taking the team to the Super Bowl in two straight years.
Which means that, one way or the other, he wouldn’t be hitting the market at all. If he even gets the Bills to the postseason once in the next two years, Taylor will be going nowhere -- especially since they haven’t been to the playoffs at all since 1999.