We pointed out over the weekend that the contract given by the Browns to last year’s 22nd overall pick, Brandon Weeden, could complicate talks between the Falcons and this year’s 22nd overall pick, Desmond Trufant.
The final numbers show that the team and player found a middle ground.
Last year, Weeden received a significant fourth-year guarantee, with $920,000 of his $1.492 million salary fully guaranteed for skill, injury, and salary cap. Trufant and the Falcons handled that wrinkle by making $300,000 of Trufant’s $918,558 base salary in 2016 fully-guaranteed, along with a $600,000 roster bonus due in March of that year.
So the guarantee is essentially the same at $900,000, unless the Falcons cut Trufant early enough in 2016 that he’ll have a chance to land with another team, with $300,000 guaranteed but subject to offset.
More importantly, the Falcons got Trufant into camp on time, which will be critical to replacing Dunta Robinson and Brent Grimes.