HAYNESWORTH’S “REAL” DEAL IS FOUR YEARS, $48 MILLION

Like we’ve said time and again when it comes to these big-money contracts, the number that gets reported carries a lot of fluff aimed at making the deal look better, presumably to help the agent leverage the transaction into attracting further clients. In the case of the contract signed on Friday by defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth with the Redskins, the headlines regarding a seven-year, $100 million deal with a maximum value of $115 million sound a lot better than something like, say, four years and $48 million. But Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports that, in reality, the contract is worth $48 million over four years. In the fifth year of the deal, Haynesworth is due to receive a whopping $29 million in salary and bonuses. And since he’ll be 32 when the 2013 season begins, the Redskins likely won’t pay those amounts. Still, $41 million of the $48 million is genuinely guaranteed, which is the true significance of the contract. Moving forward, look for a greater percentage of the actual base value of these contracts to represent guaranteed money.